Reduction of PVA Aerogel Flammability by Incorporation of an Alkaline Catalyst

Sodium hydroxide was used as a base catalyst to reduce the flammability of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) aerogels. The base-modified aerogels exhibited significantly enhanced compressive moduli, likely resulting in decreased gallery spacing and increased numbers of “struts” in their structures. The onset of decomposition temperature decreased for the PVA aerogels in the presence of the base, which appears to hinder the polymer pyrolysis process, leading instead to the facile formation of dense char. Cone calorimetry testing showed a dramatic decrease in heat release when the base was added. The results indicate that an unexpected base-catalyzed dehydration occurs at fire temperatures, which is the opposite of the chemistry normally observed under typical synthesis conditions.

Ga-Doped ZnO Nanostructured Powder for Cool-Nanopigment in Environment Applications

Gallium (Ga) doped zinc oxide (ZnO) nanocrystals were successfully synthesized via a γ-radiation-assisted polymer-pyrolysis route. Ga doped ZnO samples with Ga and ZnO precursor salts with molar ratios of 0%, 3%, 5%, and 10% were produced. A γ-radiation dosage of 1.5 kGy was used for polymerization initiation during the sample preparation. The properties of the obtained nanocrystal samples were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), UV-visible absorption, NIR-VIS-UV diffused reflectance, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM) characterization techniques. XRD results revealed the formation of ZnO nanocrystals with wurtzite structure for both Ga-doped and undoped ZnO samples. Noticeable increasing in the line broadening of the XRD peaks as well as pronounced decreasing of crystallite size were observed with the increasing Ga ratio in the samples. Optical peaks around Ga:ZnO samples showed a blueshift in the optical absorption peaks with increasing Ga content. These results are in good agreement with the dependency of crystallites size as well as grain size on Ga ratio obtained from XRD and TEM images, which make them fit well for the powder cool-pigment applications. The doped samples showed high values of NIR reflectance (RNIR*) with percentage varied from 84.25% to 89.05% that enabled them to qualify for cool-nanopigment applications. Furthermore, such doped samples registered low values of visible reflectance (RVIS*) that enabled to reduce the glare from the reflected visible sunlight.