Considering the worldwide growing discharge of minor actinides and the current need for geological disposal facilities for radioactive waste, this work provides a contribution to the safety case concerning Np transport if it would be released from deep repository sites and moving from alkaline cement conditions (near-field) to more neutral environmental conditions (far-field). The reducing conditions in a nuclear waste repository render neptunium tetravalent, which is assumed to be immobile in aqueous environment due to the low solubility solution of Np(IV). For tetravalent actinide nuclides, the most significant transport should occur via colloidal particles. This work demonstrates the formation of intrinsic neptunium dioxide nanocrystals and amorphous Np(IV) silica colloids under environmentally relevant conditions. The dissociation of the initial soluble Np(IV) complex (i.e. [Np(IV)(CO3)5]6-) induces the intrinsic formation of nanocrystalline NpO2 in the solution phase. The resulting irregularly shaped nanocrystals with an average size of 4 nm exhibit a face-centered cubic (fcc), fluorite-type structure (space group ). The NCs tend to agglomerate under ambient conditions due to the weakly charged hydrodynamic surface at neutral pH (zetapotential ~0 mV). The formation of micron-sized agglomerates, composed of nanocrystals of 2-5 nm in size, and the subsequent precipitation cause immobilization of the major amount of Np(IV) in the Np carbonate system. Agglomeration of NpO2 nanocrystals in dependence on time was indicated by PCS and UV-vis absorption spectroscopy with the changes of baseline characteristics and absorption maximum at 742 nm. Hitherto, unknown polynuclear species as intermediate species of NpO2 nanocrystal formation were isolated from solution and observed by HR-TEM. These polynuclear Np species appear as dimers, trimers and hexanuclear compounds in analogy with those reported for other actinides. Intrinsic formation of NpO2 (fcc) nanocrystals under ambient environmental conditions is prevented by admixing silicic acid: amorphous Np(IV) silica colloids are formed when silicate is present in carbonate solution. Herein, the initial molar ratio of Si to Np in solution lead to the formation of Np(IV) silica particles of different composition and size where Si content determines the structure and stability of resulting colloids. Implications for different electronic structures of Np(IV) in dependence on Si content in the solid phase are given by the shift of the absorption maximum at 742 nm characteristic for Np(IV) colloids, silica excess of 5 times the magnitude of Si to Np reveal a redshift up to 6 nm in the colloidal UV-vis spectrum. Precipitation of Np(IV) particles in the ternary system results in a different coordination sphere of Np(IV) compared to the binary system, and the incorporation of Si into internal structure of Np(IV) silica colloids in coffinite-like structure is confirmed by EXAFS. TEM confirms different kinds of particle morphologies in dependence on the silica content. Silica-poor systems reveal porous particles in the micron-range which consist of irregular cross-linked hydrolyzed Np(IV) silica compartments with pores <15 nm. In contrast, long-term stabilized and silica-enriched systems are characterized by isolated particles with an average particle size of 45 nm. Agglomerates of such isolated Np(IV) silica particles appear as consolidated amorphous solids with a densely closed surface and exhibit no internal fractures. The latter mentioned morphology of Np(IV) silica particles might facilitate the migration behavior of Np(IV) in a stabilized colloidal form under environmental conditions. The silica-enriched particles with densely closed surface are long-term stabilized as colloidal dispersion (>1 year) due to repulsion effects caused by significant surface charge. Particles synthesized from Si/Np = 9/1 carry exclusively negative surface charge in nearly the whole pH range from pH 3 to pH 10 with zetapotential = (-) 5 to (-) 30 mV. The zeta potentials of all particle systems containing silica are significantly shifted to more negative values below pH 7 where the isoelectrical point shifts from pH = 8.0 to 2.6 effecting negative charge under ambient conditions which supports electrostatic stabilization of Np(IV) particles. Particle surface charge at the slipping plane, particle size and shape necessarily depend on the initial magnitude of Si content in solution during particle formation. Particular changes of the morphology and internal structure of different Np(IV) silica colloids by aging are indicated by TEM and XPS. The composition and the crystallinity state of the initially formed amorphous phases partially changed into well-ordered nanocrystalline units characterized with fcc structure. The presence of silicate under conditions expected in a nuclear waste repository significantly influences the solubility of Np(IV) and provoke the stabilization of waterborne Np(IV) up to concentrations of 10-3 M, exceeding Np´s solubility limit by a factor of up 10.000. Neptunium and silicate significantly interact with each other, and thereby changing their individual hydrolysis and polymerization behavior. Silicate prevents the intrinsic formation of NpO2 NCs in fcc-structure, and at the same time, Np(IV) prevents the polymerization of silicate. Both processes result in the formation of Np(IV) silica colloids which possibly influence the migration behavior and fate of Np in the waste repositories and surrounding environments. For tetravalent actinides in general, the most significant transport in the environment would occur by colloidal particles. Therefore, Np(IV) silica colloids could have a significant implication in the migration of Np, the important minor actinide in the waste repositories, via colloidal transport.

In dieser Arbeit wird die Beschichtung von kolloidalen Templaten mit Hilfe der Layer-by-layer Technik beschrieben. Mit ihr ist es möglich, die Oberfläche der Template mit sehr dünnen und gut definierten Filmen zu versehen. Durch Auflösung der Template werden Kapseln hergestellt, die je nach Zusammensetzung der Beschichtung unterschiedliche Eigenschaften aufweisen. / In this thesis the coating of colloid templates using the layer-by-layer technique is described. The surface of the templates is modified with thin, well defined films. After dissolving the templates, hollow capsules with different properties are obtained.

Die ellipsometrische Lichtstreuung wird als eine neue, leistungsfähige Methode zur Charakterisierung von Schichten um kolloidale Partikel vorgestellt. Theoretische Grundlage der Methode ist die Mie-Theorie der Lichtstreuung. Experimentell wurde die Polarisationsoptik eines Null-Ellipsometers in den Strahlengang eines Lichtstreuaufbaus eingebaut. Wie in der Reflexionsellipsometrie um den Brewsterwinkel herum erhält man in der ellipsometrischen Streuung einen Winkelbereich, in dem die Methode empfindlich auf Schichten an der Oberfläche der Partikel ist. An verschiedenen Systemen wurde die Tauglichkeit der ellipsometrischen Streuung zur Charakterisierung von Schichten auf Partikeln demonstriert. So wurden Dicke und Brechungsindex einer thermosensitiven Schicht von Poly(N-isopropylacrylamid) auf einem Poly(methylmethacrylat)-Kern bestimmt. Damit ist es möglich, experimentell den Schichtbrechungsindex und damit den Quellungsgrad zu bestimmen. Des Weiteren wurde der Einfluss der NaCl-Konzentration auf die Polyelektrolythülle von Poly(methylmethacrylat)-Poly(styrolsulfonat)-Blockcopolymer-Partikeln untersucht. Die Polyelektrolytketten liegen im hier untersuchten Beispiel nicht gestreckt vor. Als drittes wurde die Verteilung von niedermolekularen Ionen um elektrostatisch stabilisierte Poly(styrol)-Latexpartikel in Wasser untersucht. Hier wurde gezeigt, dass die beobachteten Schichtdicken und Schichtbrechungsindizes viel größer sind, als nach der klassischen Poisson-Boltzmann-Theorie zu erwarten ist. Des Weiteren wurde die Doppelbrechung von unilamellaren Lipidvesikeln bestimmt. Außerdem wurden Messungen der dynamische Lichtstreuung im Intensitätsminimum der Ellipsometrie durchgeführt. Dabei wird ein Prozess mit einer Korrelationszeit, die unabhängig vom Streuvektor, aber abhängig von der verwendeten Wellenlänge ist, sichtbar. Die Natur dieses Prozesses konnte hier nicht vollständig geklärt werden. / Ellipsometric light scattering is introduced as a new and powerful technique to characterize layers on colloidal particles. For the experiments, the polarization optics used reflection ellipsometry was installed in the beam of a light scattering setup. Using the priciples of null ellipsometry, a small range of scattering angles is obtained, were the method is sensitive to layers on the surface of colloidal particles. This is an analogy to the layer sensitivity of reflection ellipsometry at planer interfaces close to the Brewster angle. The theoretical basis for ellipsometric scattering is the Mie theory with its modern supplements. The feasibility of characterizing layers on colloidal particles was demonstrated with several systems. First, layer thickness and layer refractive index of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) layers on a poly(methylmethacrylate) core were determined. This was the first time that the refractive index and with that the degree of swelling of a layer was directly determined in an scattering experiment. Second, polyelectrolyte layers on Poly(methylmethacrylate)-Poly(styrenesulfonate)-blockcopolymer particles were characterized. The influence of the salt concentration on the parameters of the layer was determined. The results show that the polyelectrolyte chains in the system investigated are not streched. Third, layers of ions around electrostatically-stabilized poly(styrene) particles were characterized. The layer thickness and layer refractive index in these examples are shown to be much larger than predicted by the classical Poisson-Boltzmann-theory. In addition, the birefringence of lipid vesicles was determined. Another interesting application of the ellipsometric scattering is the dynamic light scattering with ellipsometric optics. Its results show a characteristic process with a correlation time independent of the scattering vector, but wavelength dependent. The origin of this mode is not yet completely clarified.

In vorliegender Arbeit wurden Katalysatoren für die heterogen katalysierte Selektivhydrierung von kurzkettigen alpha,beta-ungesättigten Aldehyden, im besonderen Crotonaldehyd, zu den ungesättigten Alkoholen entwickelt und optimiert. Dabei erwiesen sich SMSI-Katalysatoren (Pt/TiO2, Ir/TiO2) und bimetallische Katalysatoren (Pt-Sn/TiO2, Pt-Sn/Al2O3, Pt-Fe/TiO2) als am geeignetsten. Diese Katalysatoren wurden durch Ionenaustausch-, Incipient-Wetness-, Controlled-Surface-Reaction-Methode bzw. Immobilisierung von Pt- und Pt/Sn-Kolloiden als Präparationstechniken hergestellt. Als Einflußgrößen auf die Hydrierung wurden Metallgehalt, Dispersität, Gehalt und Oxidationsstufe des Zweitmetalls, die Titandioxid-Modifikation der Träger sowie das Desaktivierungsverhalten untersucht. Als Charakterisierungsmethoden für die Katalysatoren wurden hauptsächlich ICP-AES, N2-Physisorption, XRD, ESR, HRTEM, H2- und CO-Chemisorption sowie XPS genutzt. Die höchste Ausbeute an Crotylalkohol wurde mit 40% an einem 1,20Pt/TiO2(P*)-Kolloidkatalysator im SMSI-Zustand erreicht.

Considering the worldwide growing discharge of minor actinides and the current need for geological disposal facilities for radioactive waste, this work provides a contribution to the safety case concerning Np transport if it would be released from deep repository sites and moving from alkaline cement conditions (near-field) to more neutral environmental conditions (far-field). The reducing conditions in a nuclear waste repository render neptunium tetravalent, which is assumed to be immobile in aqueous environment due to the low solubility solution of Np(IV). For tetravalent actinide nuclides, the most significant transport should occur via colloidal particles. This work demonstrates the formation of intrinsic neptunium dioxide nanocrystals and amorphous Np(IV) silica colloids under environmentally relevant conditions. The dissociation of the initial soluble Np(IV) complex (i.e. [Np(IV)(CO3)5]6-) induces the intrinsic formation of nanocrystalline NpO2 in the solution phase. The resulting irregularly shaped nanocrystals with an average size of 4 nm exhibit a face-centered cubic (fcc), fluorite-type structure (space group ). The NCs tend to agglomerate under ambient conditions due to the weakly charged hydrodynamic surface at neutral pH (zetapotential ~0 mV). The formation of micron-sized agglomerates, composed of nanocrystals of 2-5 nm in size, and the subsequent precipitation cause immobilization of the major amount of Np(IV) in the Np carbonate system. Agglomeration of NpO2 nanocrystals in dependence on time was indicated by PCS and UV-vis absorption spectroscopy with the changes of baseline characteristics and absorption maximum at 742 nm. Hitherto, unknown polynuclear species as intermediate species of NpO2 nanocrystal formation were isolated from solution and observed by HR-TEM. These polynuclear Np species appear as dimers, trimers and hexanuclear compounds in analogy with those reported for other actinides. Intrinsic formation of NpO2 (fcc) nanocrystals under ambient environmental conditions is prevented by admixing silicic acid: amorphous Np(IV) silica colloids are formed when silicate is present in carbonate solution. Herein, the initial molar ratio of Si to Np in solution lead to the formation of Np(IV) silica particles of different composition and size where Si content determines the structure and stability of resulting colloids. Implications for different electronic structures of Np(IV) in dependence on Si content in the solid phase are given by the shift of the absorption maximum at 742 nm characteristic for Np(IV) colloids, silica excess of 5 times the magnitude of Si to Np reveal a redshift up to 6 nm in the colloidal UV-vis spectrum. Precipitation of Np(IV) particles in the ternary system results in a different coordination sphere of Np(IV) compared to the binary system, and the incorporation of Si into internal structure of Np(IV) silica colloids in coffinite-like structure is confirmed by EXAFS. TEM confirms different kinds of particle morphologies in dependence on the silica content. Silica-poor systems reveal porous particles in the micron-range which consist of irregular cross-linked hydrolyzed Np(IV) silica compartments with pores <15 nm. In contrast, long-term stabilized and silica-enriched systems are characterized by isolated particles with an average particle size of 45 nm. Agglomerates of such isolated Np(IV) silica particles appear as consolidated amorphous solids with a densely closed surface and exhibit no internal fractures. The latter mentioned morphology of Np(IV) silica particles might facilitate the migration behavior of Np(IV) in a stabilized colloidal form under environmental conditions. The silica-enriched particles with densely closed surface are long-term stabilized as colloidal dispersion (>1 year) due to repulsion effects caused by significant surface charge. Particles synthesized from Si/Np = 9/1 carry exclusively negative surface charge in nearly the whole pH range from pH 3 to pH 10 with zetapotential = (-) 5 to (-) 30 mV. The zeta potentials of all particle systems containing silica are significantly shifted to more negative values below pH 7 where the isoelectrical point shifts from pH = 8.0 to 2.6 effecting negative charge under ambient conditions which supports electrostatic stabilization of Np(IV) particles. Particle surface charge at the slipping plane, particle size and shape necessarily depend on the initial magnitude of Si content in solution during particle formation. Particular changes of the morphology and internal structure of different Np(IV) silica colloids by aging are indicated by TEM and XPS. The composition and the crystallinity state of the initially formed amorphous phases partially changed into well-ordered nanocrystalline units characterized with fcc structure. The presence of silicate under conditions expected in a nuclear waste repository significantly influences the solubility of Np(IV) and provoke the stabilization of waterborne Np(IV) up to concentrations of 10-3 M, exceeding Np´s solubility limit by a factor of up 10.000. Neptunium and silicate significantly interact with each other, and thereby changing their individual hydrolysis and polymerization behavior. Silicate prevents the intrinsic formation of NpO2 NCs in fcc-structure, and at the same time, Np(IV) prevents the polymerization of silicate. Both processes result in the formation of Np(IV) silica colloids which possibly influence the migration behavior and fate of Np in the waste repositories and surrounding environments. For tetravalent actinides in general, the most significant transport in the environment would occur by colloidal particles. Therefore, Np(IV) silica colloids could have a significant implication in the migration of Np, the important minor actinide in the waste repositories, via colloidal transport.

Neben ihrer Bedeutung in industriellen Anwendungen dienen Kolloide als Modellsysteme in Experimenten und in der Theorie, um die Struktur und Dynamik von kondensierter Materie zu untersuchen. Kürzlich wurde experimentell gezeigt, dass eine kleine Anisotropie ausreicht, um die viskoelastische Antwort im Vergleich zu harten Kugeln drastisch zu ändern. Die mikroskopischen Ursachen hierfür sind bisher nicht verstanden. In dieser Arbeit werden daher Nichtgleichgewichts-Brownsche-Dynamik-Simulationen (NEBD) von harten kolloidalen Dumbbells in oszillatorischen Scherfeldern entwickelt und eingesetzt, um diese Resultate mit Verbindung zu Rheologie- und Neutronenstreuexperimenten zu erklären. Weiterhin wird die Bedeutung der Anisotropie für Struktur und Dynamik von solchen Suspensionen im Gleichgewicht mit Hilfe von "Linear-Response"-Theorie und Brownsche-Dynamik-Simulationen analysiert. Im linearen Limit zeigt die Scherviskosität bei hohen Packungsdichten einen dramatischen Anstieg jenseits eines kritischen Anisotropieparameters. Dies weist darauf hin, dass schon bei den kleinen Anisotropien kollektive Rotations-Translations-Kopplungen für langsame Zeitskalen verantwortlich sind. Weiterhin wird ein Nichtgleichgewichtsübergang mittels NEBD-Simulationen von Suspensionen harter Dumbbells im PC unter oszillatorischer Scherung ersichtlich. Es wird gezeigt, dass der kontinuierliche Übergang nur für sehr kleine Aspektverhältnisse erhalten bleibt. Oberhalb eines bestimmten Aspektverhältnisses wird der Übergang durch einen ungeordneten Zustand vermittelt. Außerdem wird ein Sliding-Layer Zustand mit kollektiver Ordnung der Teilchenausrichtung bei hohen Scheramplituden beobachtet. Somit zeigt diese Arbeit, dass die NEBD-Simulationen Phänomene in Rheologie- und Streuexperimenten erklären. Angesichts dieser Experimente wird gezeigt, dass der Orientierungsfreiheitsgrad einen starken Einfluss auf den strukturellen Übergang bei steigenden Amplituden hat. / Besides being important for industrial applications, colloidal suspensions have long served as model systems for investigating the structure and dynamics of condensed matter. Recently, it has been demonstrated experimentally that apparently a small particle anisotropy is sufficient to dramatically change the viscoelastic response under external shearing fields, of which the microscopic mechanisms are not yet sufficiently understood. In the present work, NEBD simulations of colloidal hard dumbbells in oscillatory shear fields are developed and employed to elucidate the novel findings in close connection with comprehensive rheology and SANS experiments. Furthermore, by utilising BD simulations and linear response theory, the impact of anisotropy on structure and dynamics of such suspensions in equilibrium is analysed. In the linear response limit, the shear viscosity exhibits a dramatic increase at high packing fractions beyond a critical anisotropy of the particles. This indicates that newly occurring, collective rotational-translational couplings must be made responsible for slow time scales appearing in the PC. Moreover, a non-equilibrium transition emerging at moderate aspect ratios is revealed by NEBD of plastic crystalline suspensions under oscillatory shear. This transition behaviour is systematically studied. It is demonstrated that the continuous nature of the transition is retained for very low aspect ratios only. Above a certain aspect ratio, the transition is mediated by an intermediate disordered state. Furthermore, a partially oriented sliding layer state featuring a finite collective order in the particles'' orientations is observed at high strains. Hence, this thesis demonstrates that the NEBD simulations explain novel phenomena in rheology and scattering experiments. In the light of these experiments, it is shown that the orientational degree of freedom has a vigorous impact on the structural transition under increasing oscillatory shear.

Die Synthese kolloidaler Nanopartikel ist daher eines der wichtigsten Forschungsthemen der letzten Jahre. Die gepulste Laserablation in Flüssigkeiten stellt eine Alternative zu den nasschemischen Synthesewegen dar. Merkmale der gepulsten Laserablation in Flüssigkeiten ist der geringe experimentelle Aufwand, die Vielseitigkeit und die Möglichkeit stabilisatorfreie kolloidale Nanopartikel herzustellen. Eine Weiterentwicklung ist die Verwendung von Pulversuspensionen als Ausgangsmaterial. Dies führt zu höheren Produktivitäten und neuen Materialien. Die zugrundeliegenden Prozesse sind allerdings komplex. Um diese Mechanismen aufzuklären, wurde ein chemischer Ansatz gewählt. Als Ausgangsmaterial wurden daher verschiedene Kupferverbindungen (Cu2C2, Cu5Si, Cu3N, Cu(N3)2, Cu3P, Cu2O, CuO, Cu2S, CuS und CuI) verwendet. Die hergestellten Nanopartikel wurden mit Hilfe der analytischen Transmissionselektronenmikroskopie charakterisiert. Dadurch konnten nachgewiesen werden, dass zwei Mechanismen an der Nanopartikelbildung beteiligt sind. Die Laserbestrahlung von Ausgangsmaterialien wie CuO und Cu3N führt zur Bildung von metallischen Kupfernanopartikeln. In dem dabei erzeugten Plasma nukleieren die Kupferatome zunächst zu kleinen primären Nanopartikeln. Diese Partikel koaleszieren anschließend und bilden größere sekundäre Partikel. Im Gegensatz zu dieser reduktiven Ablation, resultiert die Laserbestrahlung von CuI in der Fragmentierung des Materials. In diesem Fall wird kein Plasma erzeugt, sondern der induzierte thermische Stress führt zur Fragmentierung des Kristalls unter Beibehaltung der chemischen Zusammensetzung. Die Frage, welcher der beiden Mechanismen für ein bestimmtes Ausgangsmaterial dominiert, ist entscheidend für potentielle Anwendungen der Methode, da hiervon die chemische Zusammensetzung der erhaltenen Nanopartikel abhängt. Dies wird am Beispiel der Synthese von Bi2Te3 Nanopartikeln diskutiert, die in thermoelektrischen Elementen zur Anwendung kommen können. / The synthesis of colloidal nanoparticles has become a major topic in recent years. The pulsed laser ablation in liquids poses an alternative to the common wet-chemical approaches. Key features of the pulsed laser ablation in liquids are its simple setup, its versatility, and the possibility to generate surfactant-free colloidal nanoparticles. A further development of this technique is the use of suspended powders instead of bulk targets. This leads to higher productivities and even new materials. Although the generation of colloids by irradiating a suspension is straight forward, the underlying mechanisms of the size reduction from micrometer to nanometer sized particles appear to be quite complex. In order to reveal the mechanism a chemical approach was chosen. Hence, various copper compounds (Cu2C2, Cu5Si, Cu3N, Cu(N3)2, Cu3P, Cu2O, CuO, Cu2S, CuS and CuI) were used as a model system in order to investigate the impact of the leaving group on the ablation process. The generated nanoparticles were characterized with analytical transmission electron microscopy. These investigations clearly show that there are two distinct mechanisms involved in nanoparticle formation. The laser irradiation of precursors like CuO and Cu3N results in the formation of metallic copper nanoparticles. In the generated plasma copper atoms nucleate and form small primary particles. These particles later coalesce to larger secondary particles. In contrast to this reductive ablation, the irradiation of CuI follows a fragmentation mechanism. Here, the absorbed power of the laser beam does not produce a plasma but introduces thermal stress leading to fragmentation of the crystal while the chemical composition is preserved. The question which mechanism is predominant is of utmost importance as the chemical composition of the nanoparticles depends on the formation process. This is discussed on the example of the synthesis of Bi2Te3 nanoparticles, which can be used in thermoelectric applications.

Die Arbeit untersucht den Einfluss des pH - Wertes auf die Fluoreszenzintensität von Multischichtsystemen während des Beschichtungsvorgangs von Siliziumdioxidpartikeln mit kovalent an Polyallylaminhydrochlorid (PAH) gebundenem Rhodamin - B - Isothiocyanat. Durch eine konsequente Pufferung mit 2 -(N - Morpholino)ethansulfonsäure während der Beschichtung kann eine Verbesserung der Homogenität der Schichtbildung und eine Erhöhung der Fluoreszenzintensität erreicht werden. Außerdem liegt eine lineare Steigerung der Fluoreszenzintensität proportional zur Anzahl der fluoreszenten Schichten vor. Weiterhin sollen kolloidale Partikel unter konstanter Pufferung zusätzlich zu Rhodamin – B – Isothiocyanat mit an PAH – gebundenem Fluoresceinisothiocyanat beschichtet werden. Dieses Farbstoffpaar weist bei Annäherung eine Fluoreszenzsteigerung durch einen Fluoreszenzresonanzenergietransfer aus. Durch Variation von Schichtanzahl und Abstand wurden verschiedene Partikelpopulationen hergestellt, die sich in Ihrer Fluoreszenzintensität analog zu einem Bead Array Assay im Durchflusszytometer klar differenzieren lassen und dabei auch eine gleichmäßige Steigerung der Fluoreszenzintensität analog zur Anzahl der fluoreszenten Schichten aufweisen.

Carbon nanotubes are known as one of the strongest materials in nature and since their discovery; they have triggered the scientific interest for fabricating multi-functional polymer composites. However, a well-known problem associated to the incorporation of nanoparticulate materials in polymer matrices is their tendency to agglomerate in order to reduce their surface energy, and the extreme increase of the polymer viscosities (i.e melts, solutions, etc), which makes it very difficult to process them. Polymers can be efficiently reinforced by fibers for applications where high strength and stiffness are required. Micro-scale short fiber reinforced polymer composites have been an alternative way to obtain fiber reinforced composites since the long fiber incorporation is a painful job and not always feasible and easy to produce composites in big scale. Therefore, use of long glass fibers as the support for depositing CNTs as well as CNTs+other kind of nanoparticles was made, and the resulting interfaces were investigated in detail by single fiber model composites. This approach can bring the CNT functionality, fiber strength and toughness to the final composite, and simultaneously alleviate the manufacturing process from increase of the polymer high viscosities. Finally, very logically the question of whether to improve or destroy the interface integrity comes before implementing the hybrid hierarchical reinforcements in bigger scales, and an output out of this work will be given. Furthermore, several information and functionalities arising from the CNTs at the interphase region will be elucidated like cure monitoring of the epoxy resin matrix, UV-sensing ability, and thermoelectric energy harvesting, giving rise to multi-functional structural composites. CNT-modified natural fibers also have been utillised to fabricate short fiber reinforced composites, and have shown a promising reinforcement effect due to the CNT nanostructured interfaces. The ‘interface’ in fiber reinforced polymer composites (FRPCs) is known as a very crucial parameter that has to be considered in the design of a composite with desired properties. Interfaces are often considered as surfaces however, they are in fact zones or areas with compositional, structural, and property gradients, typically varying from that of the fiber and the matrix material. Characterization of the mechanical properties of interfaces is necessary for understanding the mechanical behavior of scaled-up composites. In fact, the mechanical characteristics of a fiber/resin composite depend mainly on i) the mechanical properties of the component materials, ii) the surface of the fiber, and iii) the nature of the fiber/resin bonding as well as the mode of stress transfer at the interface. Among the many factors that govern the characteristics of composites involving a glass, carbon, natural or ceramic fiber, and a macromolecular matrix, the adhesion between fiber and matrix plays a predominant role. In specific, the stress transfer at the interface requires an efficient coupling between fiber and matrix. Therefore, it is important to optimize the interfacial bonding since a direct linkage between fiber and matrix gives rise to a rigid, low impact resistance composite material.

Die Fähigkeit künstlicher Mikroschwimmer, auf äußere Reize zu reagieren und deren mechanistische Ursprünge, gehören zu den umstrittensten Fragen der interdisziplinären Wissenschaft. Die Erzeugung chemischer Gradienten ist dabei eine technische Herausforderung, da sie aufgrund von Diffusion schnell abflachen. Inspiriert von ‘Stop-flow’ Experimenten aus der chemischen Kinetik zeigen wir, dass die Erzeugung eines mikrofluidischen Gradienten durch Kombination mit einer Druckrückkopplungsschleife zur präzisen Kontrolle des Stoppens erfolgen kann. Das ermöglicht es uns, die mechanistischen Details der Chemotaxis von künstlichen katalytischen Janus-Mikromotoren zu untersuchen. Wir stellen fest, dass diese Kupfer-Janus-Partikel eine chemotaktische Bewegung entlang des Konzentrationsgradienten sowohl in positiver als auch in negativer Richtung zeigen, und wir demonstrieren die mechanische Reaktion der Partikel auf unausgewogene Widerstandskräfte, die dieses Verhalten erklären.