Synthesis and Characterization of Polystyrene/CuO-Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> Nanocomposites from Natural Materials as Hydrophobic Photocatalytic Coatings

This study reports on the synthesis, characterization of polystyrene(PS)/CuO-Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> nanocomposites, and their application as hydrophobic coatings. CuO and Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> materials were synthesized from natural material...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Ratnawulan Ratnawulan, Ramli Ramli, Ahmad Fauzi, Sukma Hayati AE
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2021-12-01
Series:Crystals
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4352/11/1/31
Description
Summary:This study reports on the synthesis, characterization of polystyrene(PS)/CuO-Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> nanocomposites, and their application as hydrophobic coatings. CuO and Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> materials were synthesized from natural materials by the milling method. Meanwhile, the PS/CuO-Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> nanocomposites were synthesized by the sol-gel method. Furthermore, the hydrophobic coating on the glass substrate was made by the spin-coating. To obtain highest value of contact angle, the composition of both CuO and Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> in nanocomposite as well as calcination temperatures were varied. Sample characterization was conducted using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and ultraviolet visible (Uv-Vis) spectrophotometry analysis. The Sessile drop method was used to determine the contact angle of the layer. The results showed that PS/CuO-Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> nanocomposite was successfully obtained with a crystal size between 40–52 nm and grain size of 92 nm. In addition to the basic material of composites, hematite and tenorite, the presence of copper ferrite phase was also identified. The CuO-Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> composition and its large calcination temperature also plays an effective role in the magnitude of the contact angle. The highest value of contact angle obtained was 125.46° at 3:1 composition and calcination temperature of 200 °C. We found that the PS/CuO-Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> composite was hydrophobic, but the photocatalyst activity was very small at 0.24%.
ISSN:2073-4352