Structural assessment of nanocomposites

This paper provides an overview on structural assessment of nanocomposite materials. First of all, a brief description of advanced structure characterization methods such as scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and scanning tunneling microscopy is presented. Secondly, applications of these methods for analysis of structures and compositions of typical nanocomposites are introduced. The nanocomposites are formed by different nanoscale processing technologies. Electrochemically polymerized polyaniline (PANi) nanocomposites, thermo-mechanically processed metal matrix nanocomposites, nanocast ceramic matrix composites are typical examples discussed in this paper. Case studies on several functional nanocomposites for energy storage/conversion, catalysis and sensing applications are mentioned. After that, assessment of the interface structures of nanocomposite materials using surface characterization techniques and mechanical damage models is discussed. Finally, concluding remarks are provided. (c) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.