Use of CeO2 Nanoparticles to Enhance UV-Shielding of Transparent Regenerated Cellulose Films

Abstract

The major challenge in preparing polymer nanocomposites is to prevent the agglomeration of inorganic nanoparticles (NPs). Here, with regenerated cellulose (RC) films as supporting medium, UV-shielding and transparent nanocomposite films with hydrophobicity were fabricated by in situ synthesis of CeO2 NPs. Facilitated through the interaction between organic and inorganic components revealed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transformation infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) characterization, it was found that CeO2 NPs were uniformly dispersed in and immobilized by a cellulose matrix. However some agglomeration of CeO2 NPs occurred at higher precursor concentrations. These results suggest that the morphology and particle size of CeO2 and the corresponding performance of the resulting films are affected by the porous RC films and the concentrations of Ce(NO3)3·6H2O solutions. The optimized nanocomposite film containing 2.95 wt% CeO2 NPs had more than 75% light transmittance (550 nm), high UV shielding properties, and a certain hydrophobicity.

Cellulose Acetate Incorporating Organically Functionalized CeO2 NPs: Efficient Materials for UV Filtering Applications

“…Even though the result is not spectacular, the band gap energy narrowing makes these materials suitable for UV filtering applications. Our results are comparable with those reported by W. Wang et al [ 14 ] on regenerated cellulose films containing CeO 2 NPs. We calculated Urbach energy which can be related to the crystalline regions in the samples or structural disorder in polymer composites, as already reported in the literature [ 42 , 43 , 44 ].…”

“…Up to now, CeO 2 particles were incorporated in various polymeric templates such as poly(meth)acrylates [ 6 , 7 , 8 ] polyurethanes [ 9 , 10 ], polyimides [ 11 ], polyamides [ 12 ] or polydimethylsiloxanes [ 13 ]. Among the plethora of polymers, one of the best candidates to immobilize CeO 2 nanoparticles (NPs), which fits both environmental and economic issues is represented by cellulose [ 14 , 15 ]. Cellulose, due to its intrinsic properties, like abundance, renewability, nontoxicity and biodegradability, combined with excellent mechanical properties is frequently studied, especially when taking into consideration that the plastic production is built mostly on feedstock extracted from oil refineries.…”

“…In this context, herein we would like to report the preparation of organic–inorganic hybrid films bearing functionalized CeO 2 NPs, with UV-shielding capabilities. The use of CA, facilitates the experimental protocol, avoiding the complex solvent systems used previously for the regenerated cellulose–CeO 2 NPs preparation [ 14 ]. Moreover, the film formation is a straightforward process, the only solvent employed being acetic acid.…”

Multi Self-Healable UV Shielding Polyurethane/CeO2 Protective Coating: The Effect of Low-Molecular-Weight Polyols

“…There are other materials also used in UV shielding. Especially, different types of dye, carbon, and polydopamine are also used as UV-shielding materials [ 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 ]. However, the CeO 2 , similar to other metal oxides, is an attractive choice as it is significantly less toxic, cheap, and possesses filler properties [ 4 , 7 ].…”

“…UV degradation resistance and the self-healing of polymers has also been separately worked on [ 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 ]. Zhang et al prepared polyethylenimine-based elastomers with self-healing property [ 27 ].…”