Dielectric and impedance spectroscopy analysis of nano-zirconia encapsulated Poly(vinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropylene) nanocomposites

Abstract

In this work, zirconia (ZrO2) nanoparticles (NPs) incorporated poly (vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) (PVDF-HFP) nanocomposites were fabricated at varying weight ratios through solution casting approach. The structural properties of PVDF-HFP/ZrO2 nanocomposites have been investigated by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. The strong interaction of ZrO2 with the PVDF-HFP matrix was observed revealing the structural modifications in the nanocomposites. The thermal degradation behavior of PVDF-HFP/ZrO2 nanocomposites was investigated by thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and differential thermal analysis (DTA). Addition of ZrO2 in the PVDF-HFP matrix has greatly improved the thermal stability of the PVDF-HFP/ZrO2 nanocomposites. The dielectric properties of the PVDF-HFP/ZrO2 nanocomposites were investigated as a function of frequency and temperature. The dielectric constant was observed to be higher at low frequency and decreased abruptly on increasing the frequency. Moreover, the impedance behavior of PVDF-HFP/ZrO2 nanocomposites with different loadings was studied by plotting Nyquist plots. These results revealed that PVDF-HFP/ZrO2 nanocomposites have shown enhanced thermal, dielectric and impedance properties as compared to neat PVDF-HFP film. These significant outcomes suggest that the PVDF-HFP/ZrO2 nanocomposites hold promise as viable options for energy storage applications.