A facile strategy was developed here to prepare cross-linked polymeric nanocapsules (CP nanocapsules) with silica nanoparticles as templates. The silica nanoparticle@cross-linked polymer nanoparticles were prepared by the encapsulation of the silica nanoparticles by the one-pot approach via surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization of hydroxyethyl acrylate in the presence of N,N'-m...

Coating or encapsulation of nanoparticles is a major challenge due to the extremely small size, high surface energy, and high surface area of the nanoparticles. In this paper we describe a new method using supercritical CO2 as an anti-solvent (SAS) for nanoparticle coating/encapsulation. A model system, using silica nanoparticles as host particles and Eudragit polymer as the coating material, w...

Biomineralization processes leading to complex solid structures of inorganic material in biological systems are constantly gaining attention in biotechnology and biomedical research. An outstanding example for biomineral morphogenesis is the formation of highly elaborate, nano-patterned silica shells by diatoms. Among the organic macromolecules that have been closely linked to the tightly contr...

Herein we describe the preparation of hybrid polymer-inorganic interfaces by the immobilization of polyoxometalate nanoclusters on functionalized polymer surfaces. The polymeric surfaces were made of polystyrene-b-poly(acrylic acid)/polystyrene (PS-b-PAA/PS) blends by spin coating on a silicon wafer. The functionalization of the polymer film was obtained by interfacial migration of the amphiphi...

Well-defined polymer brushes grafted onto silica nanoparticles were prepared by reversible additionfragmentation chain transfer polymerization (RAFT). A versatile RAFT agent, 4-cyanopentanoic acid dithiobenzoate (CPDB), was attached to amino-functionalized colloidal silica nanoparticles by direct condensation of the mercaptothiazoline-activated CPDB with the surface amino groups. RAFT polymeriz...

Nanomachines activated by a pH change can be combined with polymer coatings on mesoporous silica nanoparticles to produce a new generation of nanoparticles for drug delivery that exhibits properties of both components. The nanovalves can trap cargos inside the mesoporous silica nanoparticles without premature release and only respond to specific stimuli, resulting in a high local concentration ...

sol–gel chemistry is an efficient tool to control the morphology and reactivity of solids. drying is the crucial step due to the capillary forces exerted during the classic ambient drying process, which induces the collapse of the wet gel porosity. the use of n, n-dimethylformamide (dmf), a newly found dcca were found to be effective in the sol–gel synthesis of crack-free silica gel monolith fr...

The aggregation behavior of a novel histidine derivative surfactant N-dodecanoyl-L-histidine (DHis) in aqueous solution was investigated. By mixing with cationic/anionic surfactant, an interesting phase transition over time from transparent homogeneous solution to jelly and finally to fibrous floccules was observed with aggregates growth taken place in the systems. Making use of the growing fib...

In recent years, advanced nanocomposite materials have been widely used in a large number of commercially valuable industrial applications such as in automobile, marine coatings, aerospace, and construction industries. The nanocomposites are made up of organic polymers and inorganic nanomaterials using different processing techniques. For example, metal, metal oxide, and carbon-based nanomateri...