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NANOMATERIALS

Nanomaterials, sometimes called nanopowders when not compressed, have grain sizes in
the order of 1–100 nm in at least one coordinate and normally in three. Nanomaterials are
not new. However the understanding that certain preparations of oxides, metals, ceramics
and other substances are nanomaterials is relatively recent. Carbon black is a
nanomaterial that is used in car tyres to increase the life of the tyre and provide the black
colour. This material was first discovered in the early 1900s. Fumed silica, a component
of silicon rubber, coatings, sealants and adhesives, is also a nanomaterial. It became
commercially available in the 1940s.

Nanocrystals of a) cerium oxide, CeO2 and b) zinc oxide, ZnO.

In typical nanomaterials, the majority of the atoms are located on the surface of the
particles, whereas they are located in the bulk of conventional materials. Thus the
intrinsic properties of nanomaterials are different from conventional materials, since the
majority of atoms are in a different environment. Nanomaterials represent almost the
ultimate in increasing surface area. Substances with high surface areas have enhanced
chemical, mechanical, optical and magnetic properties, and this can be exploited for a
variety of structural and non-structural applications. Some nanomaterials are
exceptionally strong, hard and ductile at high temperatures. However, they are chemically
very active because the number of surface molecules or atoms is very large compared
with the molecules or atoms in the bulk of the material. Sometimes, to retain the desired
properties of the nanomaterial, a stabiliser must be used to prevent further reaction. This
enables them to be wear-resistant, erosion-resistant and corrosion-resistant, but this
resistance is usually imparted by some sort of protection mechanism.
PREPARATION
There are six widely known methods to produce nanomaterials. These are plasma arcing,
chemical vapour deposition, electrodeposition, sol-gel synthesis, ball milling, and the use
of natural nanoparticles. In the first two methods, molecules and atoms are separated by
vaporization and then allowed to deposit in a carefully controlled and orderly manner to
form nanoparticles. The third method, electrodeposition, involves a similar process, since
individual species are deposited from solution. The fourth process, sol-gel synthesis,
involves some prior ordering before deposition. In ball milling, known macrocrystalline
structures are broken down into nanocrystalline structures, but the original integrity of the
material is retained. However, the nanoparticles can reform into new materials, which
involve breaking the original crystallite bonds. It might be construed that materials such
as layered phyllosilicate clays are not nanomaterials since they are natural substances.
However layered phyllosilicates are natural nanostructures, although they are normally
aligned in such a way that their nanostructure cannot be exploited. The surface area to
bulk atom ratio is huge and when dispersed they form nanocrystallites. Thus chemical
treatment can generate nanomaterials with different properties.

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