Transparent nanocellulose hybrid films functionalized with ZnO nanostructures for UV-blocking

Transparent, nanocellulose–ZnO (NC–ZnO) hybrid films were fabricated via a pressure controlled extrusion process using NC fibrils and sheet-like ZnO (s-ZnO) or belt-like ZnO (b-ZnO) nanostructures. The s-ZnO and b-ZnO conjoined with the NC fibrils to form a heterogeneous, fibrous network structure. The NC–ZnO hybrid films with different amounts of ZnO nanostructures showed a synergic feature of high optical transparency and excellent UV-blocking. The results indicated that NC assembled with s-ZnO hybrid film possessed excellent UV-blocking ability in a wide range from 200 to 375 nm, in contrast to NC–b-ZnO. Moreover, the prominent thermal and photo stability of transparent NC–ZnO hybrid films enhanced extensibility and ease of use for diverse biological applications, which require tolerance of temperature changes.