Investigations on the structural, mechanical, thermal, and electrical properties of Ce-doped TiO2/poly(n-butyl methacrylate) nanocomposites

This study focused on the fabrication of poly(n-butyl methacrylate) (PBMA) nanocomposites with various concentrations of cerium-doped titanium dioxide (Ce-TiO2) nanoparticles via in situ polymerization technique. The structural characterization and the material properties of all the composites were analyzed by UV-visible, FTIR, XRD, SEM, DSC, TG, and tensile strength measurements. The UV-visible and FTIR studies confirmed the effective inclusion of Ce-TiO2 nanoparticles into the PBMA matrix. The change in amorphous morphology of PBMA to a crystalline structure was observed from the XRD pattern. The SEM morphology revealed the attachment of nanoparticles in the polymer matrix. The inclusion of Ce-TiO2 nanoparticles enhanced the glass transition temperature, and thermal stability of the PBMA matrix was revealed from DSC and TG, respectively. The tensile strength of PBMA was greatly enhanced by the addition of Ce-TiO2 nanoparticles. The AC conductivity, dielectric constant, and dielectric loss studies were also performed in the frequency range 10(2)-10(6) Hz, and it was observed that addition of Ce-TiO2 nanoparticles greatly enhanced the electrical properties of PBMA. The change in dielectric constant with the addition of nanoparticles was correlated with a theoretical modeling study. This work also extended to study the role of Ce-TiO2 nanoparticles in the reinforcing mechanism of the nanocomposite by comparing the actual tensile strength of the composite with different theoretical modeling. The high dielectric constant and tensile strength of composite are beneficial in designing lightweight and highly efficient nanoelectronic materials based on the family of polybutyl acrylates.