Abstract Flexible photothermal devices have been extensively explored in a wide range of fields in recent years. In this work, a flexible photothermal nanocomposite film based on Ti2O3-PVA has been demonstrated for converting sunlight into thermal energy. Ti2O3 nanoparticles were surfaced-modified by four kinds of different surfactants (γ–aminopropyltriethoxy Silane, Hexadecyl Trimethyl Ammonium Bromide, Stearic Acid, Polysorbate-80), respectively, and then the nanocomposites were prepared by a simple solution casting method. The flexible composite shows strong sunlight absorption in a wide spectrum range (300 nm–2000 nm). Under illumination of 5 kW/m2 simulated sunlight, the nanocomposite can be quickly heated up to 64.1 °C. The nanocomposite presented stable performances after tens of bending tests, indicating good flexibility. Our results show that the nanocomposite with Ti2O3 nanoparticles modified with Stearic Acid exhibits the strongest light absorption capability and thus the best photothermal effect. This flexible composite material may have promising potentials in the applications of photothermal energy harvesting devices for wearable electronics, solar-driven steam generators, or seawater desalinators etc.

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柔性光热 Ti2O3-PVA 纳米复合材料的制备与表征

摘要 近年来，柔性光热器件在广泛的领域得到了广泛的探索。在这项工作中，基于 Ti2O3-PVA 的柔性光热纳米复合薄膜已被证明可将阳光转化为热能。Ti2O3纳米颗粒分别用四种不同的表面活性剂（γ-氨基丙基三乙氧基硅烷、十六烷基三甲基溴化铵、硬脂酸、聚山梨酯-80）进行表面改性，然后通过简单的溶液浇铸法制备纳米复合材料。柔性复合材料在很宽的光谱范围内（300 nm-2000 nm）显示出强烈的阳光吸收。在 5 kW/m2 模拟阳光照射下，纳米复合材料可以快速加热至 64.1 °C。纳米复合材料经过数十次弯曲试验后表现出稳定的性能，表明具有良好的柔韧性。我们的结果表明，硬脂酸改性的 Ti2O3 纳米复合材料具有最强的光吸收能力，因此具有最好的光热效应。这种柔性复合材料在用于可穿戴电子设备、太阳能驱动蒸汽发生器或海水淡化器等的光热能收集设备的应用中可能具有广阔的应用前景。