Ricerc@Sapienza

Materials for the treatment of cancer have been studied comprehensively over the past few decades. Among the various kinds of biomaterials, polymer-based nanomaterials represent one of the most interesting research directions in nanomedicine because their controlled synthesis and tailored designs make it possible to obtain nanostructures with biomimetic features and outstanding biocompatibility.

Recently, graphene-polymer composites gained a central role in advanced stress and strain sensing. A fundamental step in the production of epoxy-composites filled with graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) consists in the exfoliation and dispersion of expanded graphite in a proper solvent, in the mixing of the resulting GNP suspension with the polymer matrix, and in the final removal of the solvent from the composite before curing through evaporation.

Physical hydrogels of a high-carboxymethylated derivative of scleroglucan (Scl-CM300) were investigated as potential systems for topical drug delivery using three different therapeutic molecules (fluconazole, diclofenac and betamethasone). Rheological tests were carried out on drug-loaded hydrogels along with in-vitro release studies in a vertical Franz cell, in order to investigate if and how different drugs may influence the rheological and release properties of Scl-CM300 hydrogels.

This work investigates the feasibility of using coffee silverskin (CSS), one of the most abundant coffee waste products, as a reinforcing agent in biopolymer-based composites.

Magnetic nanoparticles embedded in polymer matrices have excellent potential for electromagnetic device applications, like electromagnetic interference suppression or strain sensing applications in the structural health monitoring domain. In this work, polymer nanocomposites of polypropylene loaded with varying concentrations of magnetite nanoparticles (from 2 to 40 wt%) have been synthesized by an ex situ process. The magnetite nanoparticles were produced using a simple co-precipitation technique.

Poly(Ethylene 2,6‐Naphthalate)—PEN has been used as matrix for laminates with the aim to develop woven fiber reinforced composites with a service temperature as high as 100°C. Three different classes of fibers have been considered as reinforcement in woven fabric form: carbon, polymers (Twaron and Vectran) and mineral (basalt). Composites were manufactured by using the film stacking technique, alternating layers of balanced plain weave fabrics (0/90) and films of amorphous PEN. The manufacturing process was optimized to obtain a good impregnation of fibers and very low void content.

Contemporary thermoset composites using natural fibres offer a wide range of strength performance. Recently, the combination of flax and carbon fibres has received an increasing attention, mainly dictated by the possibility of merging in a single material high damping properties of flax fibres and the well-known high mechanical properties of carbon fibres. Evaluation of low energy impact damage defects has received a little coverage even if these composites are well known to be susceptible to impact damage.

In this study, we report about the preparation of magnetic polymer nanocomposites on the basis of isotactic polypropylene and magnetite Fe3O4 nanoparticles. The structure and composition of polymer nanocomposite materials have been studied by scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and X-ray dispersive analysis. The magnetic properties of polymer nanocomposites based on PP+Fe3O4have been investigated.

In the present study, the influence of the temperature–time mode of crystallization (TTC) on the morphology and thermal properties of PP/Fe3O4 nanocomposite materials was investigated. The morphology of the nanocomposites prepared in different TTC mode was studied by atomic force microscope. AFM study shows that the root mean square roughness of samples is 90–95, 50, 21 nm for PP/Fe3O4@20, PP/Fe3O4@200 and PP/Fe3O4@20000 respectively. Thermo gravimetric analysis was employed to investigate the thermal stability of PP/Fe3O4 nanocomposites obtained applying different TTC modes.