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The presented PhD thesis is focused on the synthesis, characterization, and modifications of zeolites and zeolitic materials. The main interests are two-dimensional (2D) zeolites and modification of their interlamellar space. Presented work was performed at the Department of Synthesis and Catalysis at J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry in Prague, Czech Republic under the supervision of Prof. Jiří Čejka. Zeolites are inorganic crystalline solids with a microporous framework structure. They are widely used as catalysts, sorbents, and ion-exchangers. Conventional zeolites have been recognized as three-dimensional (3D) tetrahedrally-connected frameworks. However, some of them are also known to exist in various layered forms (2D zeolites). Recently, the transformation of 3D germanosilicate UTL into layers (IPC-1P) has started a new branch in 2D zeolites chemistry. This chemically selective degradation of UTL framework was performed via acid hydrolysis. In the structure of this germanosilicate, Ge atoms are preferentially located in specific building units, double-four-rings (D4R), which connect dense silica layers. Modifications of the layered precursor IPC-1P led to discovery of the two novel 3D zeolites: IPC-4 (PCR) and IPC-2 (OKO). This novel approach in the zeolite synthesis, called ADOR...

The commercialization of lithium-ion batteries has played a pivotal role in the development of consumer electronics and electric vehicles. In recent years, much research has focused on the development and modification of the active materials of electrodes to obtain higher energies for a broader range of applications. High voltage spinel materials including LiNi_0.5Mn_1.5O_4-δ (LNMO) have been considered as promising cathode materials to address the increasing demands for improved battery performance due to their high operating potential, high energy density, and stable cycling lifetimes. In an effort to elucidate fundamental structure-property relationships, this thesis explores the tunable properties of single-crystal LNMO. Utilizing facile molten salt synthesis methods, the structural and electronic properties of LNMO can be well controlled. Chapter 2 of this thesis focuses on uncovering the effect of molten salt synthesis parameters including molten salt composition and synthetic temperature on the materials properties. A range of imaging, microscopic, and spectroscopic techniques are used to characterize structural and electronic properties which are investigated in tandem with electrochemical performance. Results indicate the Mn oxidation state is highly dependent on synthesis temperature and can dictate performance, while the molten salt composition strongly influences the particle morphology. In Chapter 3, we explore the concept of utilizing LNMO as a tunable support for heterogeneous metal nanocatalysts, where alteration of the support structure and electronics can have an influence on catalytic properties due to unique support effects. Ultimately, this work illustrates the tunable nature of single-crystal LNMO and can inform the rational design of LNMO materials for energy applications. / M.S. / The development of lithium-ion batteries has been fundamental to the expansion and prevalence of consumer electronics and electric vehicles in the twenty-first century. Despite their ubiquity, there is an ongoing drive by researchers to address the limitations and improve the quality and performance of lithium ion batteries. Much research has focused on altering the composition, structure, or properties of electrodes at the materials level to design higher achieving batteries. A fundamental understanding of how composition and structure effect battery performance is necessary to progress toward better materials. This thesis focuses on investigating the properties of LiNi_0.5Mn_1.5O_4-δ (LNMO). LNMO material is considered a promising cathode material to meet the increasing consumer demands for improved battery performance. Through the synthesis methods, the shape of individual particles and the global electronic properties of LNMO can be tuned. In this work, specific synthesis parameters are systematically tuned and the properties of the resultant LNMO materials are explored. Electrochemical testing also evaluates the performance of the materials and offers insights into how they may fair in real battery systems. In an effort to potentially recycle spent battery materials, LNMO is also utilized as a catalyst support. Alteration of shape and electronic properties of the LNMO support can influence the catalytic properties, or the ability of the material to enhance the rate of a chemical reaction. Overall, this thesis explores how LNMO can be tuned and utilized for different applications. This work provides insights for understanding LNMO properties and direction for the development of future battery materials.

Li-ion battery technologies have transformed the consumer electronics and electric vehicles landscape over the last few decades. Single-crystal cathode materials with controllable physical properties including size, morphology, and crystal facets can aid researchers in developing relationships between physical characteristics, chemical properties, and electrochemical performance. High-voltage LiNi_0.5Mn_1.5O₄ (LNMO) materials are desirable as cathodes due to their low cost, low toxicity, and high capacity and energy density making them promising to meet increasing consumer demands for battery materials. However, transition metal dissolution, interfacial instability, and capacity fading plague these materials when paired with graphite, limiting their commercial capability. Furthermore, variation in Ni/Mn ordering can lead to complex multiphase co-existence and changes in Mn oxidation state and electrochemical performance. These properties can be adjusted during synthesis using a facile and tunable molten salt synthesis method. This dissertation focuses on the investigation of chemical and structural heterogeneities of LNMO prepared under different synthetic conditions at different length scales. In Chapter 2, the influences of molten salt synthesis parameters on LNMO particle size, morphology, bulk uniformity, and performance are evaluated revealing the difficulty of reproducible cathode synthesis. We utilize the X-ray nanodiffraction technique throughout this work, which provides high-resolution structural information. We develop a method to measure and relate lattice strain to phase distribution at the tens of nanometers scale. In Chapter 3, mapping lattice distortions of LNMO particles with varying global Mn oxidation states reveals inherent structural defects and distortion heterogeneities. In Chapter 4, we examine lattice distortion evolution upon chemical delithiation, Mn dissolution behaviors, and evaluate the chemical delithiation method as a means to replicate electrochemical cycling conditions. We further investigate lattice distortion spatially via in situ nanodiffraction during battery cycling in Chapter 5, illustrating the capabilities of the measurement to provide practical understanding of cathode transformations. From intra-particle to electrode materials level, heterogeneities that arise in cathode materials can dictate performance properties and degradation mechanisms and are necessary for researchers to understand for the improvement of Li-ion battery systems. The development of the nanodiffraction measurements aids in our understanding of inherent and dynamic materials chemical and structural heterogeneities. / Doctor of Philosophy / The invention of rechargeable Li-ion batteries in the 1990s has undeniably revolutionized modern civilization. Cell phones, laptops, grid energy storage, and electric vehicles have become fundamental fixtures of the 21st century. As technologies improve and requirements for advanced renewable energy storage have increased, researchers have sought to design longer lasting, faster charging, and more lightweight batteries. Modifying and finding new positive electrode materials is one way to improve the capabilities of modern batteries as their properties are governed by fundamental chemistry. High-voltage LiNi_0.5Mn_1.5O₄ (LNMO) is one such material that can allow for fast charging and high energy storage capacity, but its commercialization is hindered by complex physical and chemical properties, which can limit its lifetime in batteries. Large, particles with well-defined shapes are desirable to improve the stability of the materials; however, understanding their defects and structural heterogeneities is vital to continued optimization and requires advanced characterization techniques. In this dissertation, we characterize the physical phases and chemical properties of LNMO samples prepared under different conditions resulting in different particle shapes, sizes, and chemical distributions. An advanced X-ray nanodiffraction technique is used to measure phase distributions within individual particles while lab-based analytical techniques and electrochemical testing can determine bulk properties and battery performance of materials. Overall, the aim of this work is to develop techniques to measure structural and chemical heterogeneities of cathode materials at different length scales and to understand how they influence properties and performance in batteries. This work provides valuable insights into the inherent and dynamic properties of high-voltage electrode materials useful to advance our understanding of how these materials fail and to aid researchers in creating design principles to develop stable, high-performing future generations of rechargeable batteries.

<p>Tuning the structural and electronic properties of layered materials is critical for the development of thin, flexible semiconductors that are capable of overcoming Moore’s law. Intercalation of transition metals (TMs) into the interlayer gaps of a two-dimensional host material is one of the most promising methods toward modifying the electronic properties without disrupting the chemical bonds within the layers. Previous studies have shown that the intercalation of TMs into Bi2Se3, SnS2, TaS2, and NbS2 altered the electronic, optical, and magnetic properties of the material due to orbital hybridization between the d-orbitals of the intercalant and the bands of the host material. However, the synthesis of intercalated 2D materials using compositionally-limited because the process is driven by a charge transfer reaction from the intercalant to the conduction band of the host material, which is difficult to achieve on group VI TMDs (MoS2, WS2) with high energy conduction bands. As a result, only metal atoms that are highly reducing, like alkali metals, can be effectively intercalated into WS2. Meanwhile, alkali metal-intercalated WS2 materials are unstable under ambient conditions, which significantly limits further device application. In this dissertation, we developed a solution-phase synthetic method to successfully intercalate a broad range of redox-active TM cations into WS2 and access a variety of intercalation morphologies. With these different intercalated structures, the electronic properties of WS2 can be systematically adjusted.</p> <p>First, we synthesized vanadium-intercalated WS2, and structural characterization reveals that solvated vanadium cations are uniformly intercalated in WS2, which significantly increases the interlayer spacing from 6.2 Å to 14.2 Å. Raman and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) experiments indicate a strong interaction between the vanadium intercalants and the WS2 basal plane. Electronic transport measurements show that the vanadium-intercalated WS2 is an n-type semiconductor with room-temperature conductivity of 12 S/cm, 2 orders of magnitude higher than pristine WS2. The electronic properties can be further tuned by varying the concentration of V intercalants.</p> <p>We further synthesized TM-intercalated WS2 using 17 different metal precursors, varying the identity, reduction potential, charge density, and ionic radius in order to determine the key properties that influence intercalation. With detailed structural characterization, we determined that both charge density and reduction potential of the precursor are critical toward achieving selective intercalation over secondary nucleation. The strength of the host-guest interaction is also dependent on the transition metal identity. With the strongest interaction between the TM intercalants and WS2 basal plane, FeCl3-WS2 has the lowest work function of 4.97 eV and the highest conductivity of 110 S/cm.</p>

Graphene is a two-dimensional carbon structure that exhibits remarkable structure-property relations. Consequently, there has been immense effort undertaken towards developing methods for graphene synthesis. Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and chemical exfoliation from colloidal suspensions are two common methods used for obtaining graphene films. However, the underlying experimental conditions have to be carefully optimized in order to obtain graphene films of controllable thickness and morphology. In this context, a significant part of this dissertation was devoted towards developing and improving current CVD-based and chemical exfoliation based methods for synthesizing high quality graphene films. Specifically, in the CVD based procedure for growing graphene on copper, the effect of surface pretreatment of copper was investigated and the quality of graphene grown using two different pretreatment procedures was compared and analyzed. In particular, graphene grown on electropolished copper (EP-Cu) was analyzed with respect to its surface morphology, surface roughness and thickness, and compared with graphene grown on as cold-rolled acetic acid cleaned copper (AA-Cu). It was shown that electropolishing of the Cu substrates prior to graphene growth greatly enhanced the ability to obtain flat, uniform, predominantly single layer graphene surface coverage on copper. The reported surface roughness of the graphene on EP-Cu was found to be much lower than for previously reported systems, suggesting that the electropolishing procedure adopted in this work has great promise as a pretreatment step for Cu substrates used in CVD growth of graphene. Obtaining graphene from colloidal suspensions of graphitic systems was also examined. In this work, an acid (H₂SO₄ + HNO₃) treatment process for intercalating natural graphite flakes was examined and the ability to reversibly intercalate and deintercalate acid ions within graphitic galleries was investigated. More importantly, a rapid-thermal expansion (RTP) processing was developed to thermally expand the acid-treated graphite, followed by exfoliation of predominantly bilayer graphene as well as few layer graphene flakes in an organic solvent (N, N-Dimethylformamide - DMF). The developed method was shown to provide bilayer and few layer graphene flakes in a reliable fashion. Fullerene is another carbon nanostructure that has garnered attention due to unique structure and chemical properties. Recently, there has been increased focus towards harnessing the properties of fullerenes by synthesizing fullerene self-assemblies in the form of extended rods, tubes and more complex shapes. Current methods to synthesize these self-assemblies are either cumbersome, time consuming or expensive. In this context, an alternate, straightforward dip-coating procedure technique to self-assemble equal-sized, faceted, polymerized fullerene nanorods on graphene-based substrates in a rapid fashion was developed. By suitably modifying the kinetics of self-assembly, the ability to reliably control the spatial distribution, size, shape, morphology and chemistry of fullerene nanorods was achieved.

A presente tese tem como objetivo principal a investigação do processo de intercalação e esfoliação do hexaniobato lamelar em soluções de hidróxidos de tetraalquilamônios e, também, do emprego das partículas do niobato na preparação de materiais híbridos com polissacarídeos. O material de composição H2K2Nb6O17 foi suspenso em soluções aquosas contendo diferentes concentrações dos hidróxidos de tetrametilamônio (TMA+), tetraetilamônio (TEA+) e tetrapropilamônio (TPA+). Após o tempo de reação foram separadas duas frações: o sólido depositado no recipiente e o sobrenadante turvo contendo as partículas não depositadas de características coloidais. Os resultados de difratometria de raios X, análise termogravimétrica, análise elementar, espectroscopia vibracional no infravermelho e Raman mostram que o processo de intercalação é promovido segundo a ordem: TMA+ > TEA+ > TPA+, isto é, a intercalação é facilitada para íons pouco volumosos. Já o processo de esfoliação do hexaniobato é promovido na ordem inversa: TPA+ » TEA+ > TMA+, ou seja, quanto mais volumoso o íon tetraalquilamônio, maior a extensão do processo de separação das lamelas. A formação das partículas cilíndricas, presentes em maior quantidade nas amostras tratadas com soluções de TPA+ e TBA+, é favorecida pelo aumento do tamanho da cadeia carbônica e da concentração das soluções do hidróxido. Além dos processos de intercalação ou esfoliação, observou-se o processo de formação de gel na etapa de remoção de eletrólitos na lavagem dos sólidos depositados. O entumescimento das lamelas empilhadas de hexaniobato é favorecido para amostras intercaladas com íons TEA+; possivelmente esses íons possuem a melhor relação entre hidrofilicidade e tamanho, promovendo a formação de gel. O composto contendo íons TEA+ intercalados no hexaniobato ácido foi empregado na preparação de material híbrido contendo o polissacarídeo quitosana intercalado na matriz inorgânica, com o objetivo de modificar a superfície do hexaniobato para promover a compatibilização com o amido e a formação de nanocompósitos. Filmes de amido desestruturado contendo partículas de hexaniobato foram preparados por casting. Para alcançar alto grau de dispersão da partícula inorgânica no polímero, três tipos de partículas de hexaniobato foram empregadas: (i) partículas esfoliadas com n-butilamina, (ii) partículas altamente hidratadas de TEA+-hexaniobato e (iii) partículas modificadas pela intercalação com quitosana. As técnicas de difratometria de raios X, análise termogravimétrica acoplada à espectrometria de massa, espectroscopia vibracional no infravermelho e microscopia eletrônica de varredura sugerem que nos filmes transparentes e flexíveis obtidos, a matriz lamelar se encontra preferencialmente na forma intercalada. Os resultados preliminares de análise dinâmico-mecânica sugerem a seguinte tendência no comportamento mecânico dos filmes: a adição do hexaniobato torna os filmes de amido mecanicamente mais resistentes e as amostras sem o plastificante glicerol apresentam maior resistência e menor deformação que aquelas com glicerol. / The main aim of this Thesis is the investigation of intercalation and exfoliation processes occurring when the layered material H2K2Nb6O17 is suspended in alkaline solutions containing tetramethylammonium (TMA+), tetraethylammonium (TEA+) or tetrapropylammonium (TPA+) cations, as well as the employment of the hexaniobate particles in the preparation of hybrid materials with polysaccharides. After the reaction using different concentrations of the tetraalkylammonium hydroxide solutions, two fractions were separated: the deposited solid (i.e. the sediment at bottom of the flasks) and the opaque supernatant containing particles with colloidal characteristics. Experimental data from X-ray diffractometry (XRD), mass spectrometry coupled thermogravimetric analyses (TG-MS), elemental analysis, vibrational infrared (IR) and Raman spectroscopies show that intercalation reaction is promoted in the order TMA+ > TEA+ > TPA+ while exfoliation process is facilitated in the inverse order: TPA+ » TEA+ > TMA+. Development of particles with stick-like shapes is observed when H2K2Nb6O17 is kept mainly in the solutions containing the larger TPA+ and TBA+ ions. Samples containing intercalated TEA+ ions form a gel-like system when washed to remove the non-intercalated ions dissolved in water. Experimental data suggest that the gel phase constituted by long-range swelled particles. This fact was interpreted as a consequence of the intermediate characteristics (surface polarity and ion radius) of the TEA+ ions compared to the others ions investigated in this study. The hexaniobate material intercalated with TEA+ ions was used to prepare a hybrid material having the chitosan polymer intercalated into the inorganic matrix in order to compatibilize the hexaniobate particles with starch and a nanocomposite formation. The study of the films of starch-niobate showed that the matrix is in the intercalation form preferentially, even using different exfoliation agents and modification species (n-butylamine, TEAOH and chitosan). Films of destructured starch having hexaniobate particles were prepared by casting method. In order to reach a high level of inorganic particles dispersed in the polymer, three kinds of hexaniobate particles were used: (i) particles exfoliated with n-butylamine, (ii) hydrated particles of TEA+-hexaniobate and (iii) hexaniobate particles intercalated with chitosan. XRD, TG-MS, IR, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques suggest that hexaniobate particles are mainly in the intercalated form in the transparent and flexible obtained starch films. Preliminary dynamic mechanical analysis data indicate the following general tendency in the mechanic characteristics of the films: niobate particles make the starch films more resistant and the samples without the glycerol plasticizer present higher resistance and lower deformation than the films with glycerol.

O presente trabalho de Doutorado tem como objetivo investigar a influência de materiais lamelares prístinos e modificados e a influência de diferentes rotas sintéticas nas propriedades físico-químicas do amido termoplástico, utilizando glicerol como plastificante. Para tanto, empregou-se para a produção dos materiais híbridos uma argila sintética da família das hectoritas (Laponita RD) na forma prístina e também modificada com íons berberine e carnosina, além de um hidróxido duplo lamelar (HDL) constituído por íons Zn2+/Al3+ intercalado com carboximetilcelulose (CMC). O amido e o material lamelar foram combinados, utilizando as metodologias de casting e extrusão, nas concentrações de 2,5 e 5,0 % (m/m) de argila ou HDL com relação ao polissacarídeo. Já quantidade de plastificante empregada foi variável, dependendo da rota de preparação empregada, sendo de aproximadamente 20 % (m/m) via casting e 30 % (m/m) via extrusão com relação ao amido. Conforme mostram os difratogramas de raios X dos filmes obtidos pelo método casting, todos os filmes contendo argila em sua composição exibem um sinal largo de difração na região de baixo ângulo de 2&#952;, embora pouco intenso, indica a existência de certa quantidade de nanocompósito do tipo intercalado. Já para os materiais obtidos via extrusão, os sinais de difração em baixo ângulo são consideravelmente alargados e muito pouco intensos. A propriedade térmica do amido termoplástico foi piorada em todos os casos estudados nos materiais contendo argila ou HDL em sua composição. A presença de carga inorgânica na formulação dos materiais híbridos preparados não retardou o processo de decomposição não-oxidativo do amido. A presença de uma maior quantidade de glicerol nos materiais obtidos por extrusão resultou em uma antecipação ainda maior no principal evento de perda de massa, em comparação com os mesmos materiais obtidos via casting. Devido à alta característica hidrofílica do amido, materiais lamelares intercalados com espécies que possuem maior caráter hidrofílico, como a Laponita prístina (contendo apenas íons Na+) e a carnosina mostraram uma melhor dispersão pela matriz polimérica, através da análise por técnicas de microscopia. Adicionalmente, observou-se uma melhor homogeneidade de distribuição da fase lamelar na fase polimérica nos filmes obtidos por casting em comparação com os materiais obtidos por extrusão. Os resultados mecânicos de todos os materiais híbridos analisados mostram tendências pouco conclusivas com relação ao amido termoplástico. Em geral, observa-se uma melhora muito sutil na máxima resistência a tração com a presença de material lamelar na composição dos materiais testados, além de uma diminuição na elongação máxima. Da mesma forma, a permeabilidade a gases dos filmes contendo argila ou HDL em sua composição mostrou resultados pouco conclusivos com relação ao amido termoplástico, geralmente exibindo uma redução modesta na permeabilidade. A investigação do perfil de biodegradação dos materiais contendo fase lamelar em sua composição mostrou que apenas a amostra contendo Laponita modificada com carnosina obtida por extrusão foi capaz de retardar significativamente a conversão do carbono das cadeias poliméricas em CO2, com relação ao amido termoplástico. / This present Thesis aimed to investigate the influence of pristine and modified layered materials and the influence of different preparation routes on the physicochemical properties of thermoplastic starch, using glycerol as plasticizer. To reach this goal, it was used to produce hybrid materials a synthetic clay belonging to the hectorite family (Laponite RD) in both pristine form and modified with berberine and carnosine ions and also a layered double hydroxide (LDH) comprised of Zn2+/Al3+ ions intercalated with carboxymethylcellulose (CMC). Both starch and the layered material were combined using casting and extrusion methodologies, using concentrations of 2.5 and 5.0 % (w/w) of clay or LDH relative to starch. The amount of plasticizer utilized was variable, depending on the preparation route employed. It was used approximately 20 % (w/w) of glycerol on casting route and 30 % (w/w) on extrusion route relative to starch. According to X ray diffractograms of the films obtained by casting route, all hybrid films that contain clay in their composition exhibit a large diffraction signal at low 2&#952; angle values, albeit its low intensity, indicates the existence of a certain contribuition of a intercalated nanocomposite. On the other hand, the hybrid materials obtained through extrusion method, these low angle diffraction signals are very broad and possess very low intensity. The thermal properties of thermoplastic starch were worsened in all studied cases after combined with clay or LDH. The presence of inorganic filler on the formulation of hybrid materials does not postpone the beginning of the non-oxidative decomposition process of starch. A higher amount of glycerol on the final materials obtained through extrusion resulted in an even greater anticipation on the main mass loss event in comparison to the analogous materials obtained using casting technique. Due to the high hydrophilic nature of starch, layered materials intercalated with ionic species that show higher hydrophilicity such as pristine Laponite (containing solely Na+ ions) and carnosine exhibited better dispersion through the polymer matrix, after being analyzed with microscopic techniques. Additionaly, it was observed a higher homogeneity of distribution of the layered phase over the polymer phase on the films obtained through casting in comparison to the materials obtained through extrusion. The tensile tests of all analyzed hybrid materials show a poorly conclusive trend in comparison to thermoplastic starch. In general, it was observed a subtle improvement on the maximum tensile strength of the materials containing layered material in their composition and also a decrease in the maximum elongation. In a same trend, gas permeability of the films was poorly conclusive in comparison to thermoplastic starch, generally resulting in a subtle reduction of permeability values. The investigation of biodegradation profile of the materials containing inorganic filler show that only Laponite modified with carnosine ions was able to postpone significatively the conversion of carbon from the polymer chains to CO2 in comparison to thermoplastic starch.

A presente tese tem como objetivo principal a investigação do processo de intercalação e esfoliação do hexaniobato lamelar em soluções de hidróxidos de tetraalquilamônios e, também, do emprego das partículas do niobato na preparação de materiais híbridos com polissacarídeos. O material de composição H2K2Nb6O17 foi suspenso em soluções aquosas contendo diferentes concentrações dos hidróxidos de tetrametilamônio (TMA+), tetraetilamônio (TEA+) e tetrapropilamônio (TPA+). Após o tempo de reação foram separadas duas frações: o sólido depositado no recipiente e o sobrenadante turvo contendo as partículas não depositadas de características coloidais. Os resultados de difratometria de raios X, análise termogravimétrica, análise elementar, espectroscopia vibracional no infravermelho e Raman mostram que o processo de intercalação é promovido segundo a ordem: TMA+ > TEA+ > TPA+, isto é, a intercalação é facilitada para íons pouco volumosos. Já o processo de esfoliação do hexaniobato é promovido na ordem inversa: TPA+ » TEA+ > TMA+, ou seja, quanto mais volumoso o íon tetraalquilamônio, maior a extensão do processo de separação das lamelas. A formação das partículas cilíndricas, presentes em maior quantidade nas amostras tratadas com soluções de TPA+ e TBA+, é favorecida pelo aumento do tamanho da cadeia carbônica e da concentração das soluções do hidróxido. Além dos processos de intercalação ou esfoliação, observou-se o processo de formação de gel na etapa de remoção de eletrólitos na lavagem dos sólidos depositados. O entumescimento das lamelas empilhadas de hexaniobato é favorecido para amostras intercaladas com íons TEA+; possivelmente esses íons possuem a melhor relação entre hidrofilicidade e tamanho, promovendo a formação de gel. O composto contendo íons TEA+ intercalados no hexaniobato ácido foi empregado na preparação de material híbrido contendo o polissacarídeo quitosana intercalado na matriz inorgânica, com o objetivo de modificar a superfície do hexaniobato para promover a compatibilização com o amido e a formação de nanocompósitos. Filmes de amido desestruturado contendo partículas de hexaniobato foram preparados por casting. Para alcançar alto grau de dispersão da partícula inorgânica no polímero, três tipos de partículas de hexaniobato foram empregadas: (i) partículas esfoliadas com n-butilamina, (ii) partículas altamente hidratadas de TEA+-hexaniobato e (iii) partículas modificadas pela intercalação com quitosana. As técnicas de difratometria de raios X, análise termogravimétrica acoplada à espectrometria de massa, espectroscopia vibracional no infravermelho e microscopia eletrônica de varredura sugerem que nos filmes transparentes e flexíveis obtidos, a matriz lamelar se encontra preferencialmente na forma intercalada. Os resultados preliminares de análise dinâmico-mecânica sugerem a seguinte tendência no comportamento mecânico dos filmes: a adição do hexaniobato torna os filmes de amido mecanicamente mais resistentes e as amostras sem o plastificante glicerol apresentam maior resistência e menor deformação que aquelas com glicerol. / The main aim of this Thesis is the investigation of intercalation and exfoliation processes occurring when the layered material H2K2Nb6O17 is suspended in alkaline solutions containing tetramethylammonium (TMA+), tetraethylammonium (TEA+) or tetrapropylammonium (TPA+) cations, as well as the employment of the hexaniobate particles in the preparation of hybrid materials with polysaccharides. After the reaction using different concentrations of the tetraalkylammonium hydroxide solutions, two fractions were separated: the deposited solid (i.e. the sediment at bottom of the flasks) and the opaque supernatant containing particles with colloidal characteristics. Experimental data from X-ray diffractometry (XRD), mass spectrometry coupled thermogravimetric analyses (TG-MS), elemental analysis, vibrational infrared (IR) and Raman spectroscopies show that intercalation reaction is promoted in the order TMA+ > TEA+ > TPA+ while exfoliation process is facilitated in the inverse order: TPA+ » TEA+ > TMA+. Development of particles with stick-like shapes is observed when H2K2Nb6O17 is kept mainly in the solutions containing the larger TPA+ and TBA+ ions. Samples containing intercalated TEA+ ions form a gel-like system when washed to remove the non-intercalated ions dissolved in water. Experimental data suggest that the gel phase constituted by long-range swelled particles. This fact was interpreted as a consequence of the intermediate characteristics (surface polarity and ion radius) of the TEA+ ions compared to the others ions investigated in this study. The hexaniobate material intercalated with TEA+ ions was used to prepare a hybrid material having the chitosan polymer intercalated into the inorganic matrix in order to compatibilize the hexaniobate particles with starch and a nanocomposite formation. The study of the films of starch-niobate showed that the matrix is in the intercalation form preferentially, even using different exfoliation agents and modification species (n-butylamine, TEAOH and chitosan). Films of destructured starch having hexaniobate particles were prepared by casting method. In order to reach a high level of inorganic particles dispersed in the polymer, three kinds of hexaniobate particles were used: (i) particles exfoliated with n-butylamine, (ii) hydrated particles of TEA+-hexaniobate and (iii) hexaniobate particles intercalated with chitosan. XRD, TG-MS, IR, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques suggest that hexaniobate particles are mainly in the intercalated form in the transparent and flexible obtained starch films. Preliminary dynamic mechanical analysis data indicate the following general tendency in the mechanic characteristics of the films: niobate particles make the starch films more resistant and the samples without the glycerol plasticizer present higher resistance and lower deformation than the films with glycerol.

O presente trabalho de Doutorado tem como objetivo investigar a influência de materiais lamelares prístinos e modificados e a influência de diferentes rotas sintéticas nas propriedades físico-químicas do amido termoplástico, utilizando glicerol como plastificante. Para tanto, empregou-se para a produção dos materiais híbridos uma argila sintética da família das hectoritas (Laponita RD) na forma prístina e também modificada com íons berberine e carnosina, além de um hidróxido duplo lamelar (HDL) constituído por íons Zn2+/Al3+ intercalado com carboximetilcelulose (CMC). O amido e o material lamelar foram combinados, utilizando as metodologias de casting e extrusão, nas concentrações de 2,5 e 5,0 % (m/m) de argila ou HDL com relação ao polissacarídeo. Já quantidade de plastificante empregada foi variável, dependendo da rota de preparação empregada, sendo de aproximadamente 20 % (m/m) via casting e 30 % (m/m) via extrusão com relação ao amido. Conforme mostram os difratogramas de raios X dos filmes obtidos pelo método casting, todos os filmes contendo argila em sua composição exibem um sinal largo de difração na região de baixo ângulo de 2&#952;, embora pouco intenso, indica a existência de certa quantidade de nanocompósito do tipo intercalado. Já para os materiais obtidos via extrusão, os sinais de difração em baixo ângulo são consideravelmente alargados e muito pouco intensos. A propriedade térmica do amido termoplástico foi piorada em todos os casos estudados nos materiais contendo argila ou HDL em sua composição. A presença de carga inorgânica na formulação dos materiais híbridos preparados não retardou o processo de decomposição não-oxidativo do amido. A presença de uma maior quantidade de glicerol nos materiais obtidos por extrusão resultou em uma antecipação ainda maior no principal evento de perda de massa, em comparação com os mesmos materiais obtidos via casting. Devido à alta característica hidrofílica do amido, materiais lamelares intercalados com espécies que possuem maior caráter hidrofílico, como a Laponita prístina (contendo apenas íons Na+) e a carnosina mostraram uma melhor dispersão pela matriz polimérica, através da análise por técnicas de microscopia. Adicionalmente, observou-se uma melhor homogeneidade de distribuição da fase lamelar na fase polimérica nos filmes obtidos por casting em comparação com os materiais obtidos por extrusão. Os resultados mecânicos de todos os materiais híbridos analisados mostram tendências pouco conclusivas com relação ao amido termoplástico. Em geral, observa-se uma melhora muito sutil na máxima resistência a tração com a presença de material lamelar na composição dos materiais testados, além de uma diminuição na elongação máxima. Da mesma forma, a permeabilidade a gases dos filmes contendo argila ou HDL em sua composição mostrou resultados pouco conclusivos com relação ao amido termoplástico, geralmente exibindo uma redução modesta na permeabilidade. A investigação do perfil de biodegradação dos materiais contendo fase lamelar em sua composição mostrou que apenas a amostra contendo Laponita modificada com carnosina obtida por extrusão foi capaz de retardar significativamente a conversão do carbono das cadeias poliméricas em CO2, com relação ao amido termoplástico. / This present Thesis aimed to investigate the influence of pristine and modified layered materials and the influence of different preparation routes on the physicochemical properties of thermoplastic starch, using glycerol as plasticizer. To reach this goal, it was used to produce hybrid materials a synthetic clay belonging to the hectorite family (Laponite RD) in both pristine form and modified with berberine and carnosine ions and also a layered double hydroxide (LDH) comprised of Zn2+/Al3+ ions intercalated with carboxymethylcellulose (CMC). Both starch and the layered material were combined using casting and extrusion methodologies, using concentrations of 2.5 and 5.0 % (w/w) of clay or LDH relative to starch. The amount of plasticizer utilized was variable, depending on the preparation route employed. It was used approximately 20 % (w/w) of glycerol on casting route and 30 % (w/w) on extrusion route relative to starch. According to X ray diffractograms of the films obtained by casting route, all hybrid films that contain clay in their composition exhibit a large diffraction signal at low 2&#952; angle values, albeit its low intensity, indicates the existence of a certain contribuition of a intercalated nanocomposite. On the other hand, the hybrid materials obtained through extrusion method, these low angle diffraction signals are very broad and possess very low intensity. The thermal properties of thermoplastic starch were worsened in all studied cases after combined with clay or LDH. The presence of inorganic filler on the formulation of hybrid materials does not postpone the beginning of the non-oxidative decomposition process of starch. A higher amount of glycerol on the final materials obtained through extrusion resulted in an even greater anticipation on the main mass loss event in comparison to the analogous materials obtained using casting technique. Due to the high hydrophilic nature of starch, layered materials intercalated with ionic species that show higher hydrophilicity such as pristine Laponite (containing solely Na+ ions) and carnosine exhibited better dispersion through the polymer matrix, after being analyzed with microscopic techniques. Additionaly, it was observed a higher homogeneity of distribution of the layered phase over the polymer phase on the films obtained through casting in comparison to the materials obtained through extrusion. The tensile tests of all analyzed hybrid materials show a poorly conclusive trend in comparison to thermoplastic starch. In general, it was observed a subtle improvement on the maximum tensile strength of the materials containing layered material in their composition and also a decrease in the maximum elongation. In a same trend, gas permeability of the films was poorly conclusive in comparison to thermoplastic starch, generally resulting in a subtle reduction of permeability values. The investigation of biodegradation profile of the materials containing inorganic filler show that only Laponite modified with carnosine ions was able to postpone significatively the conversion of carbon from the polymer chains to CO2 in comparison to thermoplastic starch.