Design of Functional Coatings by Chemical Methods

A special issue of Coatings (ISSN 2079-6412). This special issue belongs to the section "Thin Films".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2021) | Viewed by 15227

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Industrial Engineering, Via Sommarive 9, 38123 Trento, Italy
Interests: sol–gel chemistry; polysilsesquioxanes, polysiloxanes, and silsesquioxane–metal oxide functional coatings (materials protection, optics, photonics, catalysis); organosilica and silsesquioxane fillers for polymer–matrix nanocomposites; metal oxide, phosphate, and dichalcogenide particles and films; spectroscopic characterization (infrared, solid state NMR) of polymers, glasses, ceramics, composites, and natural materials; study of interface and structure–properties relations in hybrid organic/inorganic nanocomposites

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The fabrication of functional coatings by chemical methods gives the opportunity to tailor the structural and chemical features of inorganic and hybrid organic/inorganic materials at the nanoscale, with the possibility to fulfill new requirements both in traditional and innovative research fields.

This Special Issue aims to highlight the progress in the design of single- and multiple-component functional coatings through a wide variety of chemical methods, with a focus on synthesis, structural characterization tools, and correlation between structure and properties, which for nanocomposite layers is strictly dependent on the interface features. In this framework, an important issue is also the development of ‘smarter’ and ‘cleaner’ materials through the adoption of best practices, i.e., processes less harmful to the environment.

Starting from this background, contributions may include, but are not limited to, the following topics:

  • Sol–gel processes;
  • Microemulsion;
  • Hydrothermal/solvothermal methods;
  • Electrochemical methods;
  • CVD;
  • Inorganic coatings;
  • Hybrid organic/inorganic coatings;
  • Hydrophobic/hydrophilic coatings;
  • Porous coatings;
  • Dielectrics;
  • Semiconductors;
  • Protective and barrier coatings;
  • Optoelectronics;
  • Catalysis.

Prof. Dr. Sandra Dirè
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Coatings is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Chemical syntheses
  • Sol–gel chemistry
  • Inorganic coatings
  • Hybrid nanocomposites
  • Functional coatings
  • Structure–properties relationships

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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10 pages, 19801 KiB  
Article
Merging the Sol–Gel Technique with the Pulsed Microplasma Cluster Source Deposition to Improve Control over the Memristive Response of TiO2 Thin Films
by Valentina Prusakova, Giovanni Giusti, Cristian Collini, Giancarlo Pepponi, Mario Barozzi, Leandro Lorenzelli, Salvatore Iannotta, Roberto Verucchi and Sandra Dirè
Coatings 2021, 11(3), 348; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings11030348 - 18 Mar 2021
Viewed by 2105
Abstract
Metal oxide thin films show promising resistive switching properties, making them materials of reference for the development of memristive devices. TiO2 is probably one of the most studied materials and is being synthesized using various techniques, each of them having specific optimizable [...] Read more.
Metal oxide thin films show promising resistive switching properties, making them materials of reference for the development of memristive devices. TiO2 is probably one of the most studied materials and is being synthesized using various techniques, each of them having specific optimizable characteristics. In this paper, we report on an innovative approach by combining the sol–gel and the pulsed microplasma cluster source (PMCS) methods, exploiting the low temperature and low cost of the former process and precise control over nanocristallinity of the latter. We show that this approach overcomes the reported limitations that each technique shows in fabricating memristive devices when independently used. A side-by-side comparison of the TiO2 thin films produced by the PMCS, sol–gel, and PMCS/sol–gel hybrid methods (HM) demonstrates an improvement of the memristive properties and a reduction of the electrical shorts in the TiO2 based devices. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Design of Functional Coatings by Chemical Methods)
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20 pages, 6300 KiB  
Article
SiO2/Ladder-Like Polysilsesquioxanes Nanocomposite Coatings: Playing with the Hybrid Interface for Tuning Thermal Properties and Wettability
by Massimiliano D’Arienzo, Sandra Dirè, Elkid Cobani, Sara Orsini, Barbara Di Credico, Carlo Antonini, Emanuela Callone, Francesco Parrino, Sara Dalle Vacche, Giuseppe Trusiano, Roberta Bongiovanni and Roberto Scotti
Coatings 2020, 10(10), 913; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings10100913 - 23 Sep 2020
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 4091
Abstract
The present study explores the exploitation of ladder-like polysilsesquioxanes (PSQs) bearing reactive functional groups in conjunction with SiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) to produce UV-curable nanocomposite coatings with increased hydrophobicity and good thermal resistance. In detail, a medium degree regular ladder-like structured poly (methacryloxypropyl) [...] Read more.
The present study explores the exploitation of ladder-like polysilsesquioxanes (PSQs) bearing reactive functional groups in conjunction with SiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) to produce UV-curable nanocomposite coatings with increased hydrophobicity and good thermal resistance. In detail, a medium degree regular ladder-like structured poly (methacryloxypropyl) silsesquioxane (LPMASQ) and silica NPs, either naked or functionalized with a methacrylsilane (SiO2@TMMS), were blended and then irradiated in the form of a film. Material characterization evidenced significant modifications of the structural organization of the LPMASQ backbone and, in particular, a rearrangement of the silsesquioxane chains at the interface upon introduction of the functionalized silica NPs. This leads to remarkable thermal resistance and enhanced hydrophobic features in the final nanocomposite. The results suggest that the adopted strategy, in comparison with mostly difficult and expensive surface modification and structuring protocols, may provide tailored functional properties without modifying the surface roughness or the functionalities of silsesquioxanes, but simply tuning their interactions at the hybrid interface with silica fillers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Design of Functional Coatings by Chemical Methods)
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16 pages, 5139 KiB  
Article
Low-Temperature Preparation of SiO2/Nb2O5/TiO2–SiO2 Broadband Antireflective Coating for the Visible via Acid-Catalyzed Sol–Gel Method
by Siyuan Xu, Hongbao Jia, Chunyang Wang, Wenping Zhao, Ying Wang, Chunming Yang, Henan Wu, Jiang Zhu, Biao Wang and Qian Wang
Coatings 2020, 10(8), 737; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings10080737 - 28 Jul 2020
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 3275
Abstract
Multilayer broadband antireflective (AR) coatings consisting of porous layers usually suffers poor functional durability. Based on a quarter-half-quarter multilayer structure, AR coatings with dense SiO2 film as the top layer are designed, and refractive index for each layer is optimized. After heat-treated [...] Read more.
Multilayer broadband antireflective (AR) coatings consisting of porous layers usually suffers poor functional durability. Based on a quarter-half-quarter multilayer structure, AR coatings with dense SiO2 film as the top layer are designed, and refractive index for each layer is optimized. After heat-treated at only 150 °C, refractive index of Nb2O5 film reaches to 2.072 (at 550 nm), which can meet design requirements of the middle layer. TiO2–SiO2 composites with controllable refractive indices are selected to be used as the bottom layer. The obtained triple-layer AR coating presents excellent performance, and the average transmittance at 400–800 nm attains 98.41%. Dense layers endow the multilayer structure good abrasion-resistance, and hexamethyldisilazane is further used to modify the surface of the AR coating, which can greatly improve the hydrophobicity of the coating. The proposed triple-layer broadband AR coating has potential value in practical applications of sol–gel deposition. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Design of Functional Coatings by Chemical Methods)
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Review

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21 pages, 1644 KiB  
Review
Surface Modifications for Implants Lifetime extension: An Overview of Sol-Gel Coatings
by Elisabetta Tranquillo and Flavia Bollino
Coatings 2020, 10(6), 589; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings10060589 - 24 Jun 2020
Cited by 37 | Viewed by 5132
Abstract
The limited lifetime of implants entails having patients undergo replacement surgeries, several times throughout life in young patients, with significant risks for them and extensive cost for healthcare service. The overcoming of such inconvenience is still today a hard challenge for the scholars [...] Read more.
The limited lifetime of implants entails having patients undergo replacement surgeries, several times throughout life in young patients, with significant risks for them and extensive cost for healthcare service. The overcoming of such inconvenience is still today a hard challenge for the scholars of the biomedical and biomaterial fields. The improvement of the currently employed implants through surface modification by coatings application is the main strategy proposed to avoid implants failure, and the sol-gel coating is an ideal technology to achieve this goal. Therefore, the present review aims to provide an overview of the most important problems leading to implant failure, the sol-gel coating technology, and its use as a strategy to overcome such issues. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Design of Functional Coatings by Chemical Methods)
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