Issue 11, 2015

Billion-fold rate enhancement of urethane polymerization via the photothermal effect of plasmonic gold nanoparticles

Abstract

We use the photothermal effect of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) to provide billion-fold enhancement of on-demand bulk-scale curing of polyurethane. We follow the course of this polymerization using infrared spectroscopy, where we can observe the loss of both isocyanate and alcohol stretches, and the rise of the urethane modes. Application of 12.5 MW cm−2 of 532 nm light to a solution of isocyanate and alcohol with 0.08% w/v of 2 nm AuNPs results in the billion-fold enhancement of the rate of curing. This result is intriguing, as it demonstrates the ability of nanoscale heat to drive bulk transformations. In addition, the reaction is strongly exothermic and results in a relatively weak bond, both of which would preclude the use of bulk-scale heat, highlighting the unique utility of the photothermal effect for driving thermal reactions.

Graphical abstract: Billion-fold rate enhancement of urethane polymerization via the photothermal effect of plasmonic gold nanoparticles

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Edge Article
Submitted
14 Jun 2015
Accepted
31 Jul 2015
First published
31 Jul 2015
This article is Open Access

All publication charges for this article have been paid for by the Royal Society of Chemistry
Creative Commons BY-NC license

Chem. Sci., 2015,6, 6462-6467

Author version available

Billion-fold rate enhancement of urethane polymerization via the photothermal effect of plasmonic gold nanoparticles

K. M. Haas and B. J. Lear, Chem. Sci., 2015, 6, 6462 DOI: 10.1039/C5SC02149A

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