Organically
modified niobate nanosheets are promising building
blocks for the design of advanced hybrid materials. Nanosheets with
controlled thickness and surface composition are important for precise
structural design of the nanosheet-based materials. In this work,
single-layered and double-layered niobate nanosheets functionalized
by phenylphosphonate moieties were selectively prepared by interlayer
grafting of A-type and B-type intercalation derivatives of potassium
hexaniobate (K4Nb6O17·3H2O) with phenylphosphonic acid (PPA), followed by exfoliation
by ultrasonication in acetonitrile. The interlayer grafting of PPA
was monitored using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared
(FTIR), and solid-state NMR spectroscopy, and the thicknesses of the
exfoliated nanosheets were measured by atomic force microscopy (AFM).
Transparent hybrid films were obtained by incorporating the single-
and double-layered nanosheets into an epoxy matrix.