Challenges in preparation of metal-containing nanocomposites; dispersion of titanium into plastics

Abstract

Abstract:Metal containing polymers are of great interest as they have proven to be the most promising materials for applications such as microelectronics, holography and magnetic recording of information. Metal containing polymers also provide an alternative to even the specialty glass materials conventionally used for optical applications. Metals such as barium, lead and lanthanum have been used to improve the optical properties such as refractive index and mechanical properties such as hardness of optical plastics. The metal-containing optical plastic materials with improved refractive index of as much as 1.60 along with the Abbe number of more than 30 have been successfully designed using these metals by the authors of this paper. To further increase the refractive index without any drop in Abbe number and to improve the hardness of the polymer matrix, titanium would be the most promising metal. Incorporation of titanium in plastic matrices to form homogeneous and optically clear compositions is a challenging task. This paper reviews the state-ofthe-art by which titanium can be dispersed in polymer matrices to form metal containing composites as optical plastics.

Use of Titanium Dioxide (TiO2) Nanoparticles as Reinforcement Agent of Polysaccharide-Based Materials

“…The functionalization of organic materials through introduction of inorganic (metallic or metal oxide) nanoparticles is a strategy widely used to fabricate hybrid materials with enhanced properties, which has increased considerably in the last five years [3]. Hybrid materials, in particular, organic-inorganic materials, are commonly prepared using polysaccharides in combination with inorganic nanoparticles like TiO 2 [8,28], where the most common method for their preparation is the evaporative casting-plate via mechanical stirring ( Figure 1a) and chemical or physical surface deposition ( Figure 1b) [29]. Furthermore, the hybrid materials are classified as class I (organic and inorganic presenting noncovalent interactions) or class II (organic and inorganic exhibiting covalent interactions) depending on the intra-and intermolecular interactions among the organic matrix and cross-linking agent [3].…”

“…Titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) is a versatile material with interesting characteristics (biocompatible, chemical stability, high reactivity, electrochemical properties, low cost, and safe production) [2,[8][9][10] used as a photocatalyst for water-dye degradation [11]. It is employed as a white colorant in the food and pharmaceutical industries [11].…”

Plastic Materials for Modifying the Refractive Index of Contact Lens: Overview

“…In the following text we discuss the development and improvement of polymers used in optical applications in terms of permeability, refraction and dispersion properties. A group of researchers has reached several types of optical plastics [22,23] [27].…”