Structural, thermal, optical, and ion beam analysis of PVA/CNT polymeric nanocomposite films

PVA/CNT nanocomposite films with 10, 20, and 30 wt% CNT were prepared by casting evaporation. X-ray diffraction (XRD) confirmed the formation of monoclinic crystal structure with ≈4 nm. The unit cell volume as well as interchain distances decreased from 67.31 to 64.55 m 3 and from 5.81 × 10 −10 to 5.64 × 10 −10 m, respectively, with the increase in CNT concentrations. Due to sensitivity of PVA/CNT films to trace elements, ion beam techniques RBS, PIXE, and ERDA provide information about the light elements’ content and distribution. SEM showed textured, complex surfaces, with layered structure morphology for PVA/CNT films. TGA exhibits three stages for thermal degradation with a remarkable stage at 230 °C–280°C with major weight losses (67%, 55%, and 60%) for the 10, 20, and 30%CNT films. Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) obtained the information on spectroscopic functional groups of the films. (PVA) 90 (CNT) 10 sample shows a higher brittleness value (2.12 × 10 −3 (MPa) −2 ) due to the tensile modulus and the tensile elongation values. Most significantly, optical properties exhibited tunable indirect band gaps: 4.7 eV (10 wt%), 3.75 eV (20 wt%), and 2.9 eV (30 wt%), demonstrating excellent potential for optoelectronic device applications.