Issue 7, 2021

The stepwise organization of nanoparticles into a Pickering emulsion

Abstract

Core/shell PVSt-b-PS@Fe3O4 composite nanoparticles (NPs) are achieved by grafting living cationic block copolymer chains onto the surface of amine-capped Fe3O4 NPs via fast termination. The number of chains grafted can be tuned via the molecular weight of PVSt-b-PS. Upon grafting PEG onto the PVSt block via a click reaction, the resulting (PVSt-g-PEG)-b-PS@Fe3O4 composite NPs become highly dispersible in water. A composite nanoparticle with ten chains is selected as a homogeneous NP to demonstrate the dynamic stepwise organization of the NP as oil is fed into the aqueous dispersion. The individual NPs with captured oil are further aggregated, but remain stable with increasing oil content. Eventually, a Pickering emulsion forms in which the aggregates are anchored at the emulsion interface. This dynamic behavior study helps to provide an understanding of the mechanism by which NPs stabilize Pickering emulsions.

Graphical abstract: The stepwise organization of nanoparticles into a Pickering emulsion

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
15 11 2020
Accepted
07 12 2020
First published
08 12 2020

Soft Matter, 2021,17, 1796-1801

The stepwise organization of nanoparticles into a Pickering emulsion

J. Xu, W. Xu, D. Sun, H. Xiao and Z. Yang, Soft Matter, 2021, 17, 1796 DOI: 10.1039/D0SM02028A

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