Up400s processor

BCP/MWCNT composites of each CNT size fraction and of neat NC7000 were prepared by solution mixing using an experimental procedure that has been described in an earlier publication [17 (link)]. A total of 1 wt% of the polymer was dissolved in 20 mL of toluene for 30 min with the help of a magnetic stirrer. Then, 0.1 to 2.0 wt% of MWCNTs (concentration related to the polymer) were pre-dispersed in 20 mL of toluene for 10 min by ultrasonic treatment using an UP400S processor (Hielscher Ultrasonics GmbH, Teltow, Germany) having a maximum frequency of 24 kHz and a power of 400 W. A standard sonotrode (H3) with a tip diameter of 3 mm was used and the amplitude was set to 50%. Subsequently, the polymer solution was added to the CNT dispersion, mixed for 30 min via magnetic stirring, and was treated by ultrasound for another minute. The final dispersions were poured into a Petri dish to slowly evaporate the solvent over 3–5 days. The free-standing films exhibited a film thickness of ≈0.3 mm and were additionally dried in a vacuum chamber at 40 °C for 24 h.

Nano-CEO and Nano-EUG were developed by applying the ultrasonication emulsification method. More specifically, the formulation included 15% (w/w) CEO or EUG, as well as 5% (w/w) of the mixture of Span 80 and Tween 80 surfactants at a weight ratio of 56:44% with hydrophilic lipophilic balance (HLB) equal to 9; the remainder consisted of MilliQ water. All ingredients were mixed at room temperature (25 °C) and agitated for 3 min on the vortex mixer to obtain the initial emulsion. Finally, the samples were placed in an ultrasonic UP400S processor (Hielscher Ultrasonics GmbH, Teltow, Germany) and irradiated for 10 min (24 kHz and 0.8 w/cm²). Ultrasonic waves mixed the phases more uniformly and in smaller droplet sizes [44 (link)]. The particle size, zeta potential, and PDI of the prepared nanoemulsions were determined by the Nano-ZS ZEN analyzer (Malvern, UK).