In Situ Sol–Gel Preparation of Polysaccharide/Titanium Oxide Hybrid Colloids and Their Electrorheological Effect

Wet-Chemical Preparation of TiO₂-Based Composites with Different Morphologies and Photocatalytic Properties

TiO₂-based composites have been paid significant attention in the photocatalysis field. The size, crystallinity and nanomorphology of TiO₂ materials have an important effect on the photocatalytic efficiency. The synthesis and photocatalytic activity of TiO₂-based materials have been widely investigated in past decades. Based on our group’s research works on TiO₂ materials, this review introduces several methods for the fabrication of TiO₂, rare-earth-doped TiO₂ and noble-metal-decorated TiO₂ particles with different morphologies. We focused on the preparation and the formation mechanism of TiO₂-based materials with unique structures including spheres, hollow spheres, porous spheres, hollow porous spheres and urchin-like spheres. The photocatalytical activity of urchin-like TiO₂, noble metal nanoparticle-decorated 3D (three-dimensional) urchin-like TiO₂ and bimetallic core/shell nanoparticle-decorated urchin-like hierarchical TiO₂ are briefly discussed.

Nanocrystalline ceria: a novel material for electrorheological fluids

Nanocrystalline CeO₂ shows intriguing electroheological performance.

Guest-controlling effects on ER behaviors of beta-cyclodextrin polymer

An effective and novel approach to obtaining electrorheological particles with high performance through the formation of host-guest complexes has been achieved. The significant preponderance of the host-guest complex formation is that the host structure can be controlled easily by adding different guests. Based on this point, six supramolecular complexes of beta-cyclodextrin cross-linking polymer with salicylic acid (beta-CDP-1), 5-chlorosalicylic acid (beta-CDP-2), 3,5-dichlorosalicylic acid (beta-CDP-3), 5-nitrosalicylic acid (beta-CDP-4), 3,5-dinitrosalicylic acid (beta-CDP-5), or 3-hydroxy-2-naphthoic acid (beta-CDP-6) particles were synthesized. The electrorheological yield stresses of the suspensions of these particles in silicone oil have been investigated under DC electric fields. It was found that the yield stress of the typical beta-CDP-1 ER fluid was 5.6 kPa in 4 kV/mm, which is much higher than that of pure beta-cyclodextrin polymer (beta-CDP), that of pure salicylic acid as well as that of the mixture of the host with the guest. It is clearly indicated that the formation of supramolecular complexes between beta-CDP and salicylic acid can enhance the ER properties of the host. The similar results for other supramolecular complexes with different guests have also been obtained under the same DC electric fields. The yield stress of supramolecular complexes is strongly affected by the structure of guests. Among the six investigated guests, 3-hydroxy-2-naphthoic acid gave the highest ER property having a yield stress of 9.8 kPa under 4 kV/mm DC while cross-linked with beta-CDP to form beta-CDP-6. The yield stress of beta-CDP-6 was significantly increased by 72% in comparison with that of the pure beta-CDP. However, the yield stress of beta-CDP-1-5 slightly increased by 34-41% as compared with that of the pure beta-CDP. The achieved results indicate that the ER effect of host-guest complexes can be greatly affected by the changes of the tremendous guest structure, whereas the slight guest structural transposition, such as altering different groups of a guest, can only obtain the adjacent electrorheological behavior. The dielectric properties of these host-guest complexes also proved that the ER effect can be affected by the properties of guest.

Enhanced Electrorheological Activity of Mesoporous Cr-Doped TiO2 from Activated Pore Wall and High Surface Area

To enhance electrorheological (ER) activity by improving interfacial polarization, we prepared a new mesoporous Cr-doped TiO2 ER material by a copolymer-templated sol-gel method. The material was characterized by differential scanning calorimeter and thermogravimetric (DSC-TG) analysis, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), N2 adsorption, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) techniques. The ER activity was studied by the rheological curve and yield stress under an electric field. The results showed that the mesoporous Cr-doped TiO2 ER material possessed a high surface area over 200 m2/g and a crystalline anatase pore wall doped by different valent Cr ions. The ER activity of mesoporous Cr-doped TiO2 was higher than that of nonporous Cr-doped TiO2. The yield stress and ER efficiency of the mesoporous Cr-doped TiO2 ER suspension was 3 times as high as that of the nonporous Cr-doped TiO2 ER suspension, 7 times as high as that of the mesoporous undoped TiO2 ER suspension, and 20 times as high as that of the nonporous pure TiO2 ER suspension. Furthermore, the ER activity of mesoporous Cr-doped TiO2 showed a dependence on surface area, and the high porosity or surface area samples showed higher ER activity. The dielectric spectra analysis showed that the mesoporous Cr-doped TiO2 ER suspension possessed a significantly larger interfacial polarizability compared with the nonporous Cr-doped TiO2 ER suspension, and the regular change of polarizability with surface area or porosity was in accordance with the change of ER activity with surface area or porosity. The improvement of dielectric properties or polarization could well explain the enhancement of the ER activity of mesoporous Cr-doped TiO2.

A new approach of enhancing the shear stress of electrorheological fluids of montmorillonite nanocomposite by emulsion intercalation of poly-N-methaniline

Poly-N-methaniline/montmorillonite (PNMA-MMT) nanocomposite particles with high dielectric constant as well as suitable conductivity were synthesized by an emulsion intercalation method and characterized by FT-IR, XRD, and TEM spectrometry, respectively. The electrorheological (ER) properties of the suspensions of PNMA-MMT particles in silicone oil (20 wt%) were investigated under DC electric fields. It was found that the shear stress of poly-N-methaniline/montmorillonite electrorheological fluid (ERF) is 6.0 kPa in 3 kV/mm (74.5 s(-1)), which is 3.6 times that of electrorheological fluid at zero field, and also much higher than that of pure poly-N-methaniline (PNMA) and montmorillonite (MMT). In the range of 10-90 degrees C, the shear stress changes slightly with the temperature. The sedimentation ratio of PNMA-MMT ERF was about 97% after 60 days. Furthermore, the dielectric constant of PNMA-MMT nanocomposite was increased 3.74 times that of PNMA and 1.99 times that of MMT at 1000 Hz, the dielectric loss tangent also increased about 1.58 times that of PNMA. It is apparent that the notable ER effect of PNMA-MMT ER fluid was attributed to the prominent dielectric property of the poly-N-methaniline/montmorillonite nanocomposite particles.

Electrorheological fluids based on glycerol-activated titania gel particles and silicone oil with high yield strength

This article describes an electrorheological (ER) fluid based on glycerol-activated titania organic-inorganic hybrid gel particles and silicone oil with high yield strength. Based on a physical picture of a water-activated ER system, glycerol that has a high dielectric constant and boiling point is in situ prepared in the amorphous titania gel during the sol-gel processing. A small amount of ionic surfactant hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) is employed to enhance charge carriers in particles. FTIR and XRD techniques are used to determine the nature and structure of the hybrid gel. Rheology test results show that a large static yield stress greater than 12.6 kPa is obtained when 3 kV/mm dc electric field is applied. This value is close to the value predicted by H. Conrad (MRS Bull. 8 (1998) 35) in theory. Furthermore, dynamic shear stress as a function of shear rate and temperature is also investigated. This ER fluid exhibits strong temperature dependence and a wide working temperature range from 0 to 120 degrees C, while its leaking current density is still low. More interesting is that the glycerol content is demonstrated to have an influence on ER effect and temperature dependence. Measurement of the dielectric properties of ER fluids shows enhancement of the dielectric constant and dielectric loss due to addition of glycerol and a regular dependence of them on temperature, which well explains the strong ER effect.