Elucidation of the effect of hybrid copper/selenium nanofiller on the optical, thermal, electrical, mechanical properties and antibacterial activity of polyvinyl alcohol/carboxymethyl cellulose blend

Abstract

Polymer nanocomposite samples of a polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)/carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) blend doped with copper nanoparticles and selenium nanoparticles (Cu NPs/Se NPs) were prepared by the casting method. X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) patterns showed an increase in the degree of amorphous nature of the host polymeric matrix with increasing content of Cu/Se nanoparticles. The addition of 1.60 wt.%, Cu/Se NPs narrowed the indirect optical energy gap value of the nanocomposite from 3.97 to 2.39 eV. In addition, the differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) curve of the pure blend displays the miscibility of the blend components, confirmed by the presence of a single glass transition. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) micrographs showed that the average sizes of Cu and Se nanoparticles are about 11 and 41 nm, respectively. The maximum values of AC and DC conductivity were 6.76 × 10−6 S.cm−1 and 5.49 × 10−10 for a PVA/CMC film filled with 1.60 wt.% of Cu-Se NPs. The mechanical properties of the PVA/CMC blend improved after adding the hybrid NPs. Moreover, the antibacterial activity of the prepared samples was increased due to the filling of Cu-Se nanoparticles to the films. Therefore, these results indicate the multifunctionality of PVA/CMC/Cu-Se nanocomposite samples for use in electrical energy storage, solid-polymer electrolytes, and food packaging industry.