Book Description

Nanotechnology is the science and technology of small things in particular things that are less than 100 nm in size. One nanometer is 10-9 meters or about 3 atoms long. It is also the design, fabrication and application of nanostructures or nanomaterials. Nanotechnology is a multidisciplinary field of research and stretches over fields like materials science, mechanics, electronics, biology and medicine. At the nanoscale, materials can act differently or have surprising properties. For instance, at the nanoscale, gold mineral particles are not the color “gold.” Gold nanoparticles can appear red or purple. In addition to visual properties, like color, nanomaterials can take on other features not observed in larger sized materials. Chemically inert materials such as gold can become catalysts at the nanoscale, while others can conduct electricity more efficiently than non-nano forms. These are just a few examples of useful attributes materials possess at the nanoscale that offer so many opportunities for new technologies and societal benefits. By harnessing these new behaviors, researchers in many different disciplines hope to create many new things ranging from everyday products such as antimicrobial socks and lighter tennis rackets to state of the art solar cells, faster and smaller computers or medical treatments that selectively treat the disease. Many scientists and engineers think that the possibilities are endless. This book focuses primarily on polymer nanocomposites (PNC), which may be defined as a composite system containing a polymer matrix and homogeneously dispersed filler particles having at least one dimension below 100 nm. Polymer nanocomposites have received enormous attention both in academia and industry over the past decades. The excellent properties of nanocomposites are attributed to the large surface to volume ratio of the nanofillers. When the size of particles changes from macro size to nano size the surface area per unit volume drastically increases and their physical properties also change. The large surface-to-volume ratio of the nanoscale inclusions plays a vital role in improving the properties of nanocomposites. The book deals with the introduction to nanotechnology, the importance of nano-scale and the unique properties of nanostructured materials, an overview of the commonly used nanoparticles, selection and types of resin matrix, processing, characterization, properties, applications and future perspectives in polymer nanocomposites research . I hope that this book benefits the students and researchers who are actively involved in shaping the future of our world. I take this opportunity to thank my baby son S.P.VIHAAN for inspiring me to write this book, my husband E.PRADEEP for being my pillar of strength, my mother K.VASANTHI and my father M.KUMAR for their support in all my endeavors. I am also grateful to K.VINAYAK, K.KARTHEESWARAN and K.NISHA for their encouragement.