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Boehmite nanoparticles (AlOOH) were recently found to improve properties such as crack resistance, shrinkage and compressive strength in epoxy composites. Concentration and surface modification of boehmite nanoparticles are key factors for abovementioned enhancements. To understand the underlying mechanisms, more detailed research of micro- and nanoscopic mechanical properties is required. The presented study aims to investigate the influence of concentration and surface modification of boehmite on the stiffness of the bulk epoxy by means of AFM-based approaches: Force-Distance curves (FDC) on the sub- microscale and Intermodulation AFM and amplitude-dependent force spectroscopy (ADFS) on the nanoscale. For this purpose, stiffness-maps of epoxy filled with boehmite, with and without surface modification (HAc-boehmite) were obtained by FDC. These measurements showed a slight increase in overall stiffness of composite with increasing the nanoparticle content. The stiffening effect was observed to be intensified with HAc-boehmite. Since the lateral resolution of FDC is not high enough to distinguish nanoparticles, this effect was assumed to be due to the inevitable inclusion of nanoparticles in the measurement. By using Intermodulation-AFM, yielding ADFS stiffness maps with the resolution of <10 nm, we were able to calculate the average stiffness of bulk epoxy without the interference of nanoparticles. It was expected that the stiffness of regions faraway from particles would be equal to neat epoxy. In contrast, the results showed a drastic increase in stiffness of epoxy with increasing boehmite concentration (0, 1, 2.5, and 15%) especially in case of introducing 15wt% HAc-boehmite. Another important observation was formation of a spatial structure with non-homogenous stiffness distribution in bulk epoxy with HAc-boehmite. The underlying mechanisms of described observations are not fully understood yet. One hypothesis is the local increase in crosslinking density which we aim to investigate in our further studies by combining Dynamic Mechanical Thermal Analysis (DMTA) and Intermodulation-AFM.
The application of inorganic nanoparticles as reinforcement agent for polymer composites is constantly growing. Improving the performance of the material with desirable properties requires understanding of the interaction between polymer chains and nanoparticles and the properties of the interphase as well. Boehmite, a mineral of aluminum with basic unit of AlO(OH), is a novel and promising nanofiller which leads to enhanced performance of polymer composites. It has been recently reported that boehmite nanoparticles have reinforcing effect on epoxy matrix in carbon-fiber composites. It was primarily assumed that these improvements are due to very high Young’s modulus of boehmite particles. However, in our latest study we presented new values for the Young’s modulus of boehmite much lower than those reported earlier. This brings up the importance of interphase properties, e.g. the crosslink density, which can have the dominant role in the overall material property. Nevertheless, due to resolution limitations of conventional nanoprobing approaches, characterization of the interphase between individual particles and matrix is a challenge.
In this study, the main goal is to investigate the interphase of the epoxy/boehmite nanocomposites using AFM-based methods. We simplify the three-dimensional nanocomposite system to a two-dimensional horizontally layered sample with a large and easy to access interphase area. For this purpose, 1µm coatings of hydrothermally synthesized boehmite are prepared as the substrate on which the epoxy is later molded and cured. AFM surface potential and force maps were obtained on the cross-sectional cut of epoxy/ boehmite sample. The results show unexpectedly a large interphase area (approx. 1 µm) with different electrical and mechanical properties comparing to bulk epoxy. The average force-distance curves from this region showed more elastic behavior compared to bulk. The underlying mechanism of this influence is not fully understood yet. Thus, further investigation on the interphase region using the novel Nano-IR approach provides more information about the chemical characteristics. Numerical simulation will give complementary information to understand the effect of nanoparticles on the crosslinking density of the interphase. This can be different to bulk epoxy due to either different local temperature gradients or due to a surface selectivity of boehmite towards the monomer molecules.
Atomic force microscopy based Infrared spectroscopy (AFM-IR) is a quickly evolving technique that provides chemical analysis and compositional mapping with spatial resolution far below conventional optical diffraction limits. This is possible since the detection method is based on a very sharp AFM tip which starts to oscillate when the sample starts to thermally expand (the changed is caused by the absorption of IR wavelength) where the thermal expansion is related to the IR absorption. This presentation briefly described the application of that new technique from polymer characterization and utilization of AFM-IR in material research, up to life science applications.
Structural changes in plasmid DNA caused by radiation and its protection by Ectoine: an AFM analysis
(2017)
Most ionizing radiation in water ends in an avalanche of low energy electrons which play a dominant role together with OH-radicals in damaging DNA. In the present study we irradiated plasmid DNA with electrons (primary energy 30keV) under physiological conditions, performed with as well as without Ectoine. Ectoine is a compatible solute, synthesized and accumulated in molar concentration within bacteria to withstand osmotic stress or different other stressors.
Plasmid DNA (pUC19, 2686 bp) was studied due to its supercoiled isoform which is highly sensitive to radiation damage. In biochemistry gel electrophoresis is applied for structural analysis of DNA. Although it is a standard technique, a reliable discrimination of short fragments caused by radiation is often difficult. AFM is also commonly used for imaging susceptible biomolecules and, since it is based on a single molecule observation, for analysis of contour lengths of linear DNA as well. Therefore, in our study the structural changes in plasmid DNA after irradiation with different doses were quantitatively analyzed by means of intermittent contact AFM. The figure shows representative AFM images of electron irradiated pUC19 DNA (bar=200nm). For AFM imaging the DNA was chemically fixed on ultra-smooth mica. As can be clearly seen, with increasing radiation dose the number of undamaged DNA declines and fragmented DNA arises (A, B). In aqueous Ectoine solution (1M) the effect of radiation on DNA is dramatically depressed. Ectoine apparently confers protection even against high radiation: the plasmids remain predominantly in the supercoiled isoform (D). Therefore, we strongly believe that Ectoine is a potent protective substance of DNA against ionizing radiation.