General Strategies for Nanoparticle Dispersion

Traditionally the dispersion of particles in polymeric materials has proven difficult and frequently results in phase separation and agglomeration. We show that thermodynamically stable dispersion of nanoparticles into a polymeric liquid is enhanced for systems where the radius of gyration of the li...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 2006-03, Vol.311 (5768), p.1740-1743
Main Authors: Mackay, Michael E, Tuteja, Anish, Duxbury, Phillip M, Hawker, Craig J, Van Horn, Brooke, Guan, Zhibin, Chen, Guanghui, Krishnan, R. S
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Chemistry
Colloidal state and disperse state
Dispersion
Enthalpy
Exact sciences and technology
Fullerenes
General and physical chemistry
Gyration
Molecules
Monomers
Nanoparticles
Physical and chemical studies. Granulometry. Electrokinetic phenomena
Polyethylenes
Polymer blends
Polymers
Solubility
Thermodynamics
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Summary:Traditionally the dispersion of particles in polymeric materials has proven difficult and frequently results in phase separation and agglomeration. We show that thermodynamically stable dispersion of nanoparticles into a polymeric liquid is enhanced for systems where the radius of gyration of the linear polymer is greater than the radius of the nanoparticle. Dispersed nanoparticles swell the linear polymer chains, resulting in a polymer radius of gyration that grows with the nanoparticle volume fraction. It is proposed that this entropically unfavorable process is offset by an enthalpy gain due to an increase in molecular contacts at dispersed nanoparticle surfaces as compared with the surfaces of phase-separated nanoparticles. Even when the dispersed state is thermodynamically stable, it may be inaccessible unless the correct processing strategy is adopted, which is particularly important for the case of fullerene dispersion into linear polymers.
ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.1122225