Optical, Thermal, and Electrical Characterization of Polyvinyl Pyrrolidone/Carboxymethyl Cellulose Blend Scattered by Tungsten-Trioxide Nanoparticles

Polymers (Basel). 2023 Feb 28;15(5):1223. doi: 10.3390/polym15051223.

Abstract

The polymeric material polyvinyl pyrrolidine/carboxymethyl cellulose (PVP/CMC) was mixed with different quantities of tungsten-trioxide nanoparticles (WO3 NPs). The samples were created using the casting method and Pulsed Laser Ablation (PLA). The manufactured samples were analyzed by utilizing various methods. The halo peak of the PVP/CMC was located at 19.65°, confirming its semi-crystalline nature, as shown in the XRD analysis. FT-IR spectra of pure PVP/CMC composite and PVP/CMC composite incorporated with various contents of WO3 obtained a shift in band locations and change in intensity. Optical band gap was calculated via UV-Vis spectra, which decreased when increasing the laser-ablation time. Thermogravimetric analyses (TGA) curves showed that samples' thermal stability had improved. The frequency-dependent composite films were used to determine AC conductivity of the generated films. When increasing the content of tungsten-trioxide nanoparticles, both (ε') and (ε'') increased. The incorporation of tungsten trioxide enhanced the ionic conductivity of PVP/CMC/WO3 nano-composite to a maximum of 10-8 S/c. It is expected that these studies will have a significant impact on several utilizations, such as energy storage, polymer organic semiconductors, and polymer solar cells.

Keywords: CMC; PLA; PVP; TGA; XRD; tungsten trioxide.