TY - JOUR A1 - Omar, Hassan A1 - Smales, Glen Jacob A1 - Henning, S. A1 - Li, Z. A1 - Wang, D.-Y. A1 - Schönhals, Andreas A1 - Szymoniak, Paulina T1 - Calorimetric and Dielectric Investigations of Epoxy-Based Nanocomposites with Halloysite Nanotubes as Nanofillers JF - Polymers N2 - Epoxy nanocomposites are promising materials for industrial applications (i.e., aerospace, marine and automotive industry) due to their extraordinary mechanical and thermal properties. Here, the effect of hollow halloysite nanotubes (HNT) on an epoxy matrix (Ep) was the focus of the study. The structure and molecular mobility of the nanocomposites were investigated using a combination of X-ray scattering, calorimetry (differential (DSC) and fast scanning calorimetry (FSC)) and dielectric spectroscopy. Additionally, the effect of surface modification of HNT (polydopamine (PDA) and Fe(OH)3 nanodots) was considered. For Ep/HNT, the glass transition temperature (Tg) is was de-creased due to a nanoparticle-related decrease of the crosslinking density. For the modified system, Ep/m-HNT, the surface modification resulted in enhanced filler–matrix interactions leading to higher Tg values than the pure epoxy in some cases. For Ep/m-HNT, the amount of interface formed between the nanoparticles and the matrix ranged from 5% to 15%. Through BDS measurements, localized fluctuations were detected as a β- and γ-relaxation, related to rotational fluctuations of phenyl rings and local reorientations of unreacted components. A combination of calorimetry and BDS dielectric spectroscopy revealed a dynamic and structural heterogeneity of the matrix, as confirmed by two glassy dynamics in both systems, related to regions with different crosslinking densities. KW - Rigid amorphous fraction KW - Epoxy nanocomposites KW - Halloysite nanotubes KW - X-ray scattering KW - Differential scanning calorimetry KW - Broadband dielectric spectroscopy KW - Flash DSC PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-526668 DO - https://doi.org/10.3390/polym13101634 VL - 13 IS - 10 SP - 1634 PB - MDPI AN - OPUS4-52666 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Cano Murillo, Natalia A1 - Szymoniak, Paulina A1 - Smales, Glen Jacob A1 - Sturm, Heinz A1 - Schönhals, Andreas T1 - Electrospun nanocomposites fibers of polycarbonate and taurine modified boehmite nanoparticles - What can be learned from structural and thermal investigations JF - ACS Applied Polymer Materials N2 - Though the reinforcing properties of inorganic particles in thermosetting nanocomposites, has been exploited, the integration of nanoparticles continues to be challenging in terms of their homogeneous distribution and their manipulation which can contribute to occupational hazards. Due to a second encapsulations of nanoparticles, electrospun nanocomposite fibers containing nanoparticles might be an alternative for overcoming these issues, as the fiber nonwovens contains the nanoparticles allowing for safer manipulation. Here, the morphology, and the thermal properties of electrospun polycarbonate fibers containing taurine modified boehmite nanoparticles (BNP) are investigated by means of small and wide-angle X-ray scattering as well as fast scanning and temperature modulated fast scanning calorimetry for the first time. The latter techniques allow the investigation of the thermal properties of single fibers at heating rates up to 10^4 K s^-1 keeping its structure intact. A quantitative analysis of the scattering data reveals a porous structure of the fibers. The porous structure is quantified regarding the pore volume and the pore size. A constant amount of aggregation is found even for the highly BNP loaded fibers. Thermal analysis on the fibers reveals a rigid amorphous fraction (RAF) where it is known that RAF determinates the properties of a nanocomposite to a large extent. For the fibers RAF amounts up to 40 wt%, which is essential higher compared to equally formulated PC/BNP composite cast films. The RAF in the case of the fibers, is not only due to the presence of particles in the polymer but also due to orientation effects induced by the electrospinning process. KW - Nanocomposite fibers KW - Electrospinning KW - X-ray scattering KW - Fast scanning calorimetry KW - Rigid amorphous fraction PY - 2021 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acsapm.1c01265 VL - 3 IS - 12 SP - 6572 EP - 6585 PB - ACS AN - OPUS4-53871 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Pauw, Brian Richard A1 - Smith, A.J. A1 - Snow, T. A1 - Shebanova, O. A1 - Sutter, J.P. A1 - Ilavsky, J. A1 - Hermida-Merino, D. A1 - Smales, Glen Jacob A1 - Terrill, N.J. A1 - Thünemann, Andreas A1 - Bras, W. T1 - Extending synchrotron SAXS instrument ranges through addition of a portable, inexpensive USAXS module with vertical rotation axes JF - Journal of Synchrotron Radiation N2 - Ultra-SAXS can enhance the capabilities of existing synchrotron SAXS/WAXS beamlines. A compact ultra-SAXS module has been developed, which extends the measurable q-range with 0.0015 ≤ q (nm−1) ≤ 0.2, allowing structural dimensions in the range 30 ≤ D (nm) ≤ 4000 to be probed in addition to the range covered by a high-end SAXS/WAXS instrument. By shifting the module components in and out on their respective motor stages, SAXS/WAXS measurements can be easily and rapidly interleaved with USAXS measurements. The use of vertical crystal rotation axes (horizontal diffraction) greatly simplifies the construction, at minimal cost to efficiency. In this paper, the design considerations, realization and synchrotron findings are presented. Measurements of silica spheres, an alumina membrane, and a porous carbon catalyst are provided as application examples. KW - X-ray scattering KW - Microstructure KW - Instrumentation KW - SAXS KW - USAXS KW - Nanostructure KW - Combined techniques PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-524919 DO - https://doi.org/10.1107/S1600577521003313 VL - 28 IS - 3 SP - 824 EP - 833 PB - IUCR AN - OPUS4-52491 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Smales, Glen Jacob T1 - Following the formation of zeolites and MOFs in-situ N2 - Porous materials are of a great interest due to their ability to interact with ions and molecules not only on their surface but throughout their bulk. Porous materials are conventionally used in applications; such as ion exchange, adsorption/separation and in catalysis, exploiting the huge internal surface area of highly ordered porous materials. [1, 2] The ability for these materials to succeed, in a particular field, is dependent greatly upon the uniformity of the shape and size of the pores within the material. However, despite how well we are able to understand the stability of 3-D frameworks in crystalline or polycrystalline zeolites and ZIFs, there still remains major limitations in fully understanding the synthetic mechanisms occurring prior to their formation. [3, 4] Though the syntheses of a wide variety of porous solids are already well established, their formation mechanisms continue to be of great interest to both academic and industrial communities, with the thought that with greater understanding of the formation of these solids can lead to their rational design. By obtaining a better knowledge of the underlying nucleation mechanisms, it can allow for increased predictability of new structures and in addition can reveal valuable information regarding the particle dimensions aiding in controlling particle morphology and size. Small-angle and wide-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS/WAXS) are ideal techniques for determining morphological changes in-situ, where the shape, size and crystallinity can be followed at a high temporal resolution, and when these techniques are deployed alongside complimentary techniques, such as ex-situ microscopy, a great deal of information on the formation of materials can be obtained. The above-mentioned methodologies were utilised to study the formation of Silicalite-1 from multiple silica sources to obtain a detailed picture of the formation as a whole, including the formation of intermediate species (Image 1 show the in-situ SAXS data collected from the formation of Silicalite-1 from tetraethyl orthosilicate). In-situ SAXS/WAXS studies were also utilized to observe the formation of ZIF-8 alongside in-situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) experiments to probe both the morphological changes, as well as any changes occurring to the local structure during synthesis (Image 2 show the in-situ SAXS data collected from the formation of ZIF-8). These timeresolved in-situ studies have been utilised to follow changes in crystallinity and crystallite size, whilst also providing valuable information on the formation of intermediate species, the nucleation of crystalline ZIFs, and their subsequent growth. References: [1] M E Davis. Nature, 417(6891):813–21, 2002 [2] S T Meek, J A Greathouse, M D Allendorf, Advanced Materials, 23 (2): 249-267, 2011 [3] J Grand, H Awala, CrystEngComm,18 (5): 650–664, 2016 [4] M J V Vleet, T Weng, X Li, J R Schmidt. Chem.Rev.,118 (7): 3681–3721, 2018 T2 - 8th Conference of the Federation of European Zeolite Associations (FEZA 2021) CY - Online meeting DA - 05.07.2021 KW - SAXS KW - Zeolites KW - MOFs KW - In situ PY - 2021 AN - OPUS4-53187 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Prause, A. A1 - Hormann, A. A1 - Cristiglio, V. A1 - Smales, Glen Jacob A1 - Thünemann, Andreas A1 - Gradzielski, M. A1 - Findenegg, G. H. T1 - Incorporation and structural arrangement of microemulsion droplets in cylindrical pores of mesoporous silica JF - Molecular Physics N2 - The behaviour of microemulsion (ME) droplets in mesoporous systems is highly important for understanding the immobilisation of drugs or chemical formulations, cleaning processes or enhanced oil recovery. The loading of pores as well as the structural organisation of MEs within the pores is a relevant parameter, especially for immobilisation applications. For this reason, the uptake of microemulsions in cylindrical pores of SBA-15 was investigated via adsorption and small-angle neutron scattering (SANS). Adsorption isotherms revealed an adsorption of the microemulsion droplets based on the adsorption of surfactant as a driving force. The adapted scattering model is based on the analysis of bare SBA-15 in full contrast conditions and employs microemulsions inside of SBA-15 measured at the silica contrast matching point. Accordingly, the structural arrangement of microemulsion droplets in the pores of SBA-15 was determined in good detail. Microemulsion droplets smaller than the pore size access the pores while retaining their spherical shape and become increasingly ordered for higher loading, where the droplets arrange in a dense packing of spherical droplets in a cylindrical pore. Interestingly, microemulsion droplets larger than the pore size can easily be incorporated, but become deformed upon entering and are present as elongated rod-like structures. KW - Mesoporous Silica KW - SAXS KW - Microemulsion PY - 2021 DO - https://doi.org/10.1080/00268976.2021.1913255 VL - 119 IS - 15-16 SP - 13255 PB - Taylor & Francis AN - OPUS4-52959 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wang, Z. A1 - Villa Santos, C. A1 - Legrand, A. A1 - Haase, F. A1 - Hara, Y. A1 - Kanamori, K. A1 - Aoyama, T. A1 - Urayama, K. A1 - Doherty, C. M. A1 - Smales, Glen Jacob A1 - Pauw, Brian Richard A1 - Colon, Y. J. A1 - Furukawa, S. T1 - Multiscale structural control of linked metal–organic polyhedra gel by aging-induced linkage-reorganization JF - Chemical science N2 - Assembly of permanently porous metal–organic polyhedra/cages (MOPs) with bifunctional linkers leads to soft supramolecular networks featuring both porosity and processability. However, the amorphous nature of such soft materials complicates their characterization and thus limits rational structural control. Here we demonstrate that aging is an effective strategy to control the hierarchical network of supramolecular gels, which are assembled from organic ligands as linkers and MOPs as junctions. Normally, the initial gel formation by rapid gelation leads to a kinetically trapped structure with low controllability. Through a controlled post-synthetic aging process, we show that it is possible to tune the network of the linked MOP gel over multiple length scales. This process allows control on the molecular-scale rearrangement of interlinking MOPs, mesoscale fusion of colloidal particles and macroscale densification of the whole colloidal network. In this work we elucidate the relationships between the gel properties, such as porosity and rheology, and their hierarchical structures, which suggest that porosity measurement of the dried gels can be used as a powerful tool to characterize the microscale structural transition of their corresponding gels. This aging strategy can be applied in other supramolecular polymer systems particularly containing kinetically controlled structures and shows an opportunity to engineer the structure and the permanent porosity of amorphous materials for further applications. KW - SAXS KW - Metal-organic polyhedra KW - Structural control PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-532309 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/d1sc02883a SN - 1478-6524 SN - 1742-2183 VL - 12 IS - 38 SP - NIL_1 EP - NIL_9 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge AN - OPUS4-53230 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Stawski, Tomasz A1 - Smales, Glen Jacob A1 - Scoppola, E. A1 - Jha, D. A1 - Morales, L. F. G. A1 - Moya, A. A1 - Wirth, R. A1 - Pauw, Brian Richard A1 - Emmerling, Franziska A1 - Van Driessche, A. E. S. T1 - Seeds of imperfection rule the mesocrystalline disorder in natural anhydrite single crystals JF - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS) N2 - In recent years, we have come to appreciate the astounding intricacies associated with the formation of minerals from ions in aqueous solutions. In this context, a number of studies have revealed that the nucleation of calcium sulfate systems occurs nonclassically, involving the aggregation and reorganization of nanosized prenucleation species. In recent work, we have shown that this particle-mediated nucleation pathway is actually imprinted in the resultant micrometer-sized CaSO4 crystals. This property of CaSO4 minerals provides us with the unique opportunity to search for evidence of nonclassical nucleation pathways in geological environments. In particular, we focused on large anhydrite Crystals extracted from the Naica Mine in Mexico. We were able to shed light on this mineral's growth history by mapping defects at different length scales. Based on this, we argue that the nanoscale misalignment of the structural subunits, observed in the initial calcium sulfate crystal seeds, propagates through different length scales both in morphological, as well as in strictly crystallographic aspects, eventually causing the formation of large mesostructured single crystals of anhydrite. Hence, the nonclassical nucleation mechanism introduces a “seed of imperfection,” which leads to a macroscopic “single” crystal whose fragments do not fit together at different length scales in a self-similar manner. Consequently, anisotropic voids of various sizes are formed with very welldefined walls/edges. However, at the same time, the material retains in part its single crystal nature. KW - Calcium sulfate KW - Anhydrite KW - Mesocrystal KW - Nucleation KW - Naica PY - 2021 DO - https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2111213118 SN - 0027-8424 VL - 118 IS - 48 SP - 1 EP - 11 PB - National Academy of Sciences (USA) CY - Washington AN - OPUS4-53820 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Smales, Glen Jacob T1 - Structural characterization using small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) N2 - A short introduction to small-angle scattering, followed by a "choose your own adventure" style of talk on the characterisation of different materials using SAXS/WAXS. T2 - Operando workshop “SAXS and Ptychography” at the Paul Scherrer Institut CY - Villigen, Switzerland DA - 17.08.2021 KW - SAXS KW - Materials KW - Characterisation PY - 2021 AN - OPUS4-53188 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wallau, Wilma A1 - Recknagel, Christoph A1 - Smales, Glen Jacob T1 - Structural silicone sealants after exposure to laboratory test for durability assessment JF - Journal of Applied Polymer Science N2 - During the service life of structural sealant glazing (SSG) facades, the loadbearing capacity of the silicone bonds needs to be guaranteed. Laboratory Tests can assess the durability of SSG-systems based on mechanical characteristics of the bond after simultaneous exposure to both climatic and mechanical loads. This article studies how the material characteristics of two common structural sealants are affected by laboratory and field exposure. Dynamic mechanical Analysis (DMA) confirms a reduction in the dynamic modulus of exposed Silicone samples. Results from thermogravimetric analysis, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and small-angle X-ray scattering/wide-angle X-ray scattering show differences between the two sealants and indicate no/minor changes in the composition and morphology of the laboratory and field exposed sealants. Mechanical characterization methods, such as DMA, and tensile and shear testing of the structural bond, are shown to be sensitive toward the combined climatic and mechanical loadings, and are hence suitable for studying degradation mechanisms of structural sealants. KW - Aging KW - Analytical methods KW - Fatigue KW - Silicone elastomer KW - Structural sealant glazing PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-527217 DO - https://doi.org/10.1002/app.50881 VL - 138 IS - 35 SP - 50881 PB - Wiley AN - OPUS4-52721 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Friberg, I. A1 - Clark, A. H. A1 - Ho, P. A1 - Sadokhina, N. A1 - Smales, Glen Jacob A1 - Woo, J. A1 - Auray, X. A1 - Ferri, D. A1 - Nachtegaal, M. A1 - Krocher, O. A1 - Olsson, L. T1 - Structure and performance of zeolite supported Pd for complete methane oxidation JF - Catalysis Today N2 - The influence of zeolite support materials and their impact on CH4 oxidation activity was studied utilizing Pd supported on H-beta and H-SSZ-13. A correlation between CH4 oxidation activity, Si/Al ratio (SAR), the type of zeolite framework, reduction-oxidation behaviour, and Pd species present was found by combining catalytic activity measurements with a variety of characterization methods (operando XAS, NH3-TPD, SAXS, STEM and NaCl titration). Operando XAS analysis indicated that catalysts with high CH4 oxidation activity experienced rapid transitions between metallic- and oxidized-Pd states when switching between rich and lean conditions. This behaviour was exhibited by catalysts with dispersed Pd particles. By contrast, the formation of ion-exchanged Pd2+ and large Pd particles appeared to have a detrimental effect on the oxidation-reduction behaviour and the conversion of CH4. The formation of ion-exchanged Pd2+ and large Pd particles was limited by using a highly siliceous beta zeolite support with a low capacity for cation exchange. The same effect was also found using a small-pore SSZ-13 zeolite due to the lower mobility of Pd species. It was found that the zeolite support material should be carefully selected so that the well-dispersed Pd particles remain, and the formation of ion-exchanged Pd2+ is minimized. KW - SAXS KW - Zeolites KW - Methane Oxidation KW - XAS KW - Catalysis PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-529606 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cattod.2020.11.026 VL - 382 SP - 3 EP - 12 PB - Elsevier B.V. AN - OPUS4-52960 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - GEN A1 - Stawski, Tomasz A1 - Smales, Glen Jacob A1 - Scoppola, E. A1 - Jha, D. A1 - Morales, L. F. G. A1 - Moya, A. A1 - Wirth, R. A1 - Pauw, Brian Richard A1 - Emmerling, Franziska A1 - Van Driessche, A. E. S. T1 - Supplementary data set for "Seeds of imperfection rule the mesocrystalline disorder in natural anhydrite single crystals" N2 - In recent years, we have come to appreciate the astounding intricacy of the formation process of minerals from ions in aqueous solutions. In this context, a number of studies have revealed that nucleation in the calcium sulfate system is non-classical, involving the aggregation and reorganization of nanosized prenucleation particles. In a recent work we have shown that this particle-mediated nucleation pathway is actually imprinted in the resultant single micron-sized CaSO4 crystals. This property of CaSO4 minerals provides us with an unique opportunity to search for evidence of non-classical nucleation pathways in geological environments. In particular, we focused on the quintessential single crystals of anhydrite extracted from the Naica mine in Mexico. We elucidated the growth history from this mineral sample by mapping growth defects at different length scales. Based on these data we argue that the nano-scale misalignment of the structural sub-units observed in the initial calcium sulfate crystal seed propagate through different length-scales both in morphological, as well as strictly crystallographic aspects, eventually causing the formation of large mesostructured single crystals of anhydrite. Hence, the nanoparticle mediated nucleation mechanism introduces a 'seed of imperfection', which leads to a macroscopic single crystal, in which its fragments do not fit together at different length-scales in a self-similar manner. Consequently, anisotropic voids of various sizes are formed with very well-defined walls/edges. But, at the same time the material retains its essential single crystal nature. These findings shed new light on the longstanding concept of crystal structure. KW - Calcium sulfate KW - Mesocrystal KW - Anhydrite PY - 2021 DO - https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4943234 PB - Zenodo CY - Geneva AN - OPUS4-53765 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Smales, Glen Jacob A1 - Pauw, Brian Richard T1 - The MOUSE project: A meticulous approach for obtaining traceable, wide-range X-ray scattering information JF - Journal of instrumentation N2 - Herein, we provide a "systems architecture"-like overview and detailed discussions of the methodological and instrumental components that, together, comprise the "MOUSE" project (Methodology Optimization for UltrafineStructure Exploration). The MOUSE project provides scattering information on a wide variety of samples, with traceable dimensions for both the scattering vector (q) and the absolute scattering cross-section (I). The measurable scattering vector-range of 0.012≤ q (nm-1) ≤ 92, allows information across a hierarchy of structures with dimensions ranging from ca. 0.1 to 400 nm. In addition to details that comprise the MOUSE project, such as the organisation and traceable aspects, several representative examples are provided to demonstrate its flexibility. These include measurements on alumina membranes, the tobacco mosaic virus, and dual-source information that overcomes fluorescence limitations on ZIF-8 and iron-oxide-containing carbon catalyst materials. KW - X-ray scattering KW - MOUSE KW - Instrumentation KW - SAXS KW - Methodology KW - Traceability KW - Wide-range KW - Data curation KW - FAIR KW - Uncertainties KW - Nanomaterials KW - Nanometrology PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-528669 DO - https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-0221/16/06/P06034 VL - 16 IS - 6 SP - 1 EP - 50 PB - IOP CY - Bristol, UK AN - OPUS4-52866 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -