Investigation of mechanical properties of materials at the nanoscale. The experimental procedure was successfully tested on reference materials characterized by unique plastic behavior, e.g., polyethylene naphthalate and hugely oriented pyrolytic graphite. Each hardness and Young’s modulus values obtained from AFM measurements for diverse soot particle films were discussed. Key phrases: atomic force microscopy; nanoindentation; flameformed carbon nanoparticles; nanostructured films; hardness; Young’s modulus1. Introduction The modelling and experimental activities performed within the last decades to study the formation procedure of soot particles in combustion systems has led to substantial progresses [1,2]. Flamegenerated particulate matter is rightly regarded an environmental situation. Several studies have pointed out that ultrafine combustionformed particles are GW779439X supplier responsible for distinctive adverse effects on human well being [3,4]. Additionally, soot particle emissions can cause serious affection of the climate method [5]. On the other hand, a flame can be also seen as a reactor for the IACS-010759 Activator synthesis of engineered novel carbonaceous nanomaterials [2,six,7]. In light of the above, a deep understanding of the chemistry and the morphology of flameformed carbon nanoparticles is required to manage the synthesis of soot particles in flames for both the aforementioned objectives. A few of the properties that characterize soot particles and soot particle films happen to be currently studied and analyzed, such as particle size, morphology, carbon andCopyright: 2021 by the authors. Li censee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This short article is an open access report distributed below the terms and con ditions of your Creative Commons At tribution (CC BY) license (http://crea tivecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).Appl. Sci. 2021, 11, 8448. https://doi.org/10.3390/appwww.mdpi.com/journal/applsciAppl. Sci. 2021, 11,2 ofnanostructure [81], optical and electronical options [6,127], surface properties and interaction forces [180]. Even so, pretty little is known in regards to the mechanical properties, such as hardness and elastic modulus. Some theoretical and experimental performs have been published [213], showing that the mechanical properties of unique singlet carbon particles can deliver an indication for the crosslinking and the carbonization degree [22,23]. The mechanical behavior and the physical nanostructure of soot particles also proved to be valuable in understanding tribological effects, including the enhanced put on of mating surfaces covered with soot particles [24]. This mechanism is especially relevant in internal combustion engines which use sootcontaminated oil and lubricants [25] and it could be applied also for designing diesel particulate filters and their regeneration processes. Lately, the fabrication of coatings working with flameformed carbon nanoparticles has turn out to be extremely appealing as a novel approach for the synthesis of surfaces with enhanced properties. Nanostructured thin films of carbon nanoparticles from various flame synthesis reactor configurations are created as waterrepellent, superhydrophobic surfaces [268], electrode supplies for supercapacitors [29] and hole extractor for perovskite solar cells [30]. The characterization.
