Synthesis of polymer-inorganic filler nanocomposites in supercritical CO2

Organic-inorganic nanocomposites have become a prominent area of current research and development in the field of nanotechnology. Nanocomposites are materials composed of a polymeric host in which particles of nanoscale dimensions such as metal oxides, carbon materials, semiconductor metallic nanocrystals, and clays are incorporated. Nanocomposites are currently being used in a number of fields and new applications are continuously being developed including thin-film capacitors, electrolytes for batteries, biomaterials and a variety of devices in solar and fuel cells. The synthesis of polymeric composites usually involves solution chemistry, and because of this, the use of a large amount of organic solvents may raise serious concerns regarding air and water pollution. Therefore, effective and green synthetic methods have gained a strong interest in the synthesis of polymeric composites. During the past two decades, supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO(2)) has attracted a great deal of attention as an alternative to the conventional processing. This review article provides an overview on the synthesis of polymer-inorganic filler nanocomposites in scCO(2). (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.