Transparent and UV-shielding ZnO@PMMA nanocomposite films

•TPM modified ZnO QDs disperse homogeneously in PMMA constituting solid hybrid films.•The hybrid films are highly visible transparent and anti-ultraviolet.•The hybrid films can be directly applied as UV-shielding organic glasses.

We fabricated successfully the visible light (VL)-traversing and ultraviolet (UV)-shielding zinc oxide quantum dots (ZnO QDs)–poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) nanocomposite films by incorporating suitable UV-absorbing ZnO QDs into a transparent PMMA matrix. The ZnO QDs of about 5 nm were first synthesized via a sol–gel route. Then the 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propylmethacrylate (TPM) as a coupling agent is bound to the surface of ZnO QDs, inhibiting the agglomeration of QDs and promoting the compatibility between ZnO QDs and PMMA matrix. Such the transparent ZnO@PMMA nanocomposite films exhibit the prominent UV-absorbing capability and the high optical transparency in the visible-wavelength region, thus have direct practical applications such as UV-shielding windows and glasses.

Graphical abstractWe synthesized the highly visible transparent and UV-blocking ZnO@PMMA nanocomposite films. The ultrafine ZnO QDs with TPM as surface modifier disperse homogeneously in PMMA matrix, constituting solid hybrid films with the synergetic collaboration between UV-absorbing ZnO QDs and transparent PMMA matrix. The transparent ZnO@PMMA nanocomposite films can almost completely absorb the UV radiation of wavelengths less than 340 nm and thus can be directly applied as UV-shielding organic glasses.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload high-quality image (108 K)Download as PowerPoint slide