Effect of ceria nanoparticles on mechanical properties, thermal and dielectric properties of poly (butyl methacrylate) nanocomposites

Poly (butyl methacrylate) (PBMA) reinforced with various contents of ceria (CeO2) nanocomposites were prepared by a simple in situ polymerization method and their mechanical properties, thermal transitions, and electrical properties were studied in detail. The incorporation of CeO2 nanoparticles in the PBMA matrix was confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis. The increase in absorption intensity of UV-Visible spectra by the addition of CeO2 nanoparticles shows the better dispersion of nanoparticles in the PBMA chain. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns further revealed the semi-crystalline behavior of the PBMA by the addition of nanoparticles. The differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis indicated that the glass transition temperature of PBMA was significantly enhanced in presence of CeO2 particles. The higher thermal stability of polymer nanocomposites than that of pure PBMA was revealed from the TG analysis. The dielectric properties and AC conductivity of nanocomposites were higher than PBMA, and these electrical properties increased with the loading of ceria nanoparticles. The improvement in tensile strength and the decrease in elongation at break of composites than pure PBMA indicated the better reinforcement of ceria nanoparticles in PBMA matrix. The mechanism of increase in tensile strength of a composite by the incorporation of nanoparticles was studied by different theoretical modeling. In general, compared with pure PBMA, the polymer nanocomposite exhibited superior dielectric constant, thermal and mechanical properties, which enables their use in the fabrication of high energy storage nanoelectronic devices.