Maskless Preparation of Spatially-Resolved Plasmonic Nanoparticles on Polydimethylsiloxane via In Situ Fluoride-Assisted Synthesis

Here, a fluoride-assisted route for the controlled in-situ synthesis of metal nanoparticles (NPs) (i.e., AgNPs, AuNPs) on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) is reported. The size and coverage of the NPs on the PDMS surface are modulated with time and over space during the synthetic process, leveraging the improved yield (10×) and faster kinetics (100×) of NP formation in the presence of F⁻ ions, compared to fluoride-free approaches. This enables the maskless preparation of both linear and step gradients and patterns of NPs in 1D and 2D on the PDMS surface. As an application in flexible plasmonics/photonics, continuous and step-wise spatial modulations of the plasmonic features of PDMS slabs with 1D and 2D AgNP gradients on the surface are demonstrated. An excellent spatially resolved tuning of key optical parameters, namely, optical density from zero to 5 and extinction ratio up to 100 dB, is achieved with AgNP gradients prepared in AgF solution for 12 minutes; the performance are comparable to those of commercial dielectric/interference filters. When used as a rejection filter in optical fluorescence microscopy, the AgNP-PDMS slabs are able to reject the excitation laser at 405 nm and retain the green fluorescence of microbeads (100 µm) used as test cases.     

基于氮掺杂碳纳米颗粒荧光猝灭-恢复方法检测还原型谷胱甘肽

分别以海藻酸钠和色氨酸为碳源和氮源,采用固相法一步合成出了量子产率为47.9%的氮掺杂荧光碳纳米颗粒(N-CNPs)。根据铜离子存在的条件下,N-CNPs荧光强度的恢复情况与还原型谷胱甘肽浓度成正比的关系,建立基于N-CNPs检测还原型谷胱甘肽的新方法。优化了溶液pH及反应时间等条件。在pH 6.0、铜离子浓度30μmol/L条件下,谷胱甘肽在0.2~45μmol/L浓度范围内与N-CNPs荧光恢复强度呈良好的线性关系,检出限为50 nmol/L。方法具有灵敏度高、选择性好、操作简单等优点,可用于实际样品中谷胱甘肽的检测。     

Developmental and Reproductive Effects of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles in Arabidopsis thaliana

Increasing use of iron oxide nanoparticles in medicine and environmental remediation has led to concerns regarding exposure of these nanoparticles to the public. However, limited studies are available to evaluate their effects on the environment, in particular on plants and food crops. Here, we investigated the effects of positive (PC) and negative (NC) charged iron oxide (Fe₂O₃) nanoparticles (IONPs) on the physiology and reproductive capacity of Arabidopsis thaliana at concentrations of 3 and 25 mg/L. The 3 mg/L treated plants did not show evident effects on seeding and root length. However, the 25 mg/L treatment resulted in reduced seedling (positive-20% and negative-3.6%) and root (positive-48% and negative-negligible) length. Interestingly, treatment with polyethylenimine (PEI; IONP-PC coating) also resulted in reduced root length (39%) but no change was observed with polyacrylic acid (PAA; IONP-NC coating) treatment alone. However, treatment with IONPs at 3 mg/L did lead to an almost 5% increase in aborted pollen, a 2%–6% reduction in pollen viability and up to an 11% reduction in seed yield depending on the number of treatments. Interestingly, the treated plants did not show any observable phenotypic changes in overall size or general plant structure, indicating that environmental nanoparticle contamination could go dangerously unnoticed.     

Photopolymerization synthesis of polyacrylic acid dispersant with methoxysilicon end groups and its application in a nano‐SiO2 aqueous system

In order to improve the dispersity and stability of the nano‐SiO₂ aqueous system with high solid content, a kind of polyacrylic acid dispersant with methoxysilicon end groups (KH590‐PAA) was synthesized by photopolymerization of acrylic acid (AA) initiated with (3‐mercaptopropyl)trimethoxysilane (KH590). After adding KH590‐PAA into the nano‐SiO₂ aqueous dispersion system (20 wt% solid content), the viscosity and the curing time of the system were measured with a rotational viscometer and the inverted bottle method. Moreover, the dispersion mechanism of KH590‐PAA for the nano‐SiO₂ aqueous system was researched by measuring the adsorption capacity, the particle size and the zeta potential of the nanoparticles with a conductivity meter, dynamic light scattering, SEM and TEM, respectively. The results showed that the methoxysilicon groups in KH590‐PAA could react with hydroxyl groups on the surface of nano‐SiO₂ in the process of stirring, which enhanced the adsorption capacity of the dispersant and then increased the surface charge of the particles. Therefore, electrostatic repulsion and steric hindrance effects between the SiO₂ nanoparticles could be further enhanced by adding the KH590‐PAA dispersant, and then the nano‐SiO₂ aqueous system exhibited better dispersity and stability. Besides, the dispersion properties of SiO₂ nanoparticles in water were closely related to the addition amount and the molecular weight of the KH590‐PAA dispersant. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry     

Magnetic Nanoparticle Arrays Self-Assembled on Perpendicular Magnetic Recording Media

We study magnetic-field directed self-assembly of magnetic nanoparticles onto templates recorded on perpendicular magnetic recording media, and quantify feature width and height as a function of assembly time. Feature widths are determined from Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) images, while heights are obtained with Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM). For short assembly times, widths were ~150 nm, while heights were ~14 nm, a single nanoparticle on average with a 10:1 aspect ratio. For long assembly times, widths approach 550 nm, while the average height grows to 3 nanoparticles, ~35 nm; a 16:1 aspect ratio. We perform magnetometry on these self-assembled structures and observe the slope of the magnetic moment vs. field curve increases with time. This increase suggests magnetic nanoparticle interactions evolve from nanoparticle–nanoparticle interactions to cluster–cluster interactions as opposed to feature–feature interactions. We suggest the aspect ratio increase occurs because the magnetic field gradients are strongest near the transitions between recorded regions in perpendicular media. If these gradients can be optimized for assembly, strong potential exists for using perpendicular recording templates to assemble complex heterogeneous materials.     

Formation of ST12 phase Ge nanoparticles in ZnO thin films

In this work, we focus on the Ge nanoparticles (Ge-np) embedded ZnO multilayered thin films. Effects of reactive and nonreactive growth of ZnO layers on the rapid thermal annealing (RTA) induced formation of Ge-np have been specifically investigated. The samples were deposited by sequential r.f. and d.c. sputtering of ZnO and Ge thin film layers, respectively on Si substrates. As-prepared thin film samples have been exposed to an ex-situ RTA at 600 °C for 60 s under forming gas atmosphere. Structural characterizations have been performed by X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Raman scattering, Secondary Ion Mass Spectroscopy (SIMS), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) techniques. It has been realized that reactive or nonreactive growth of ZnO layers significantly influences the morphology of the ZnO: Ge samples, most prominently the crystal structure of Ge-np. XRD and Raman analysis have revealed that while reactive growth results in a mixture of diamond cubic (DC) and simple tetragonal (ST12) Ge-np, nonreactive growth leads to the formation of only DC Ge-np upon RTA process. Formation of ST12 Ge-np has been discussed based on structural differences due to reactive and nonreactive growth of ZnO embedding layer.     

Mixed-Metal MOF-74 Templated Catalysts for Efficient Carbon Dioxide Capture and Methanation

The vast chemical and structural tunability of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) are beginning to be harnessed as functional supports for catalytic nanoparticles spanning a range of applications. However, a lack of straightforward methods for producing nanoparticle-encapsulated MOFs as efficient heterogeneous catalysts limits their usage. Herein, a mixed-metal MOF, NiMg-MOF-74, is utilized as a template to disperse small Ni nanoclusters throughout the parent MOF. By exploiting the difference in Ni O and Mg O coordination bond strength, Ni²⁺ is selectively reduced to form highly dispersed Ni nanoclusters constrained by the parent MOF pore diameter, while Mg²⁺ remains coordinated in the framework. By varying the ratio of Ni to Mg in the parent MOF, accessible surface area and crystallinity can be tuned upon thermal treatment, influencing CO₂ adsorption capacity and hydrogenation selectivity. The resulting Ni nanoclusters prove to be an active catalyst for CO₂ methanation and are examined using extended X-ray absorption fine structure and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. By preserving a segment of the Mg²⁺-containing MOF framework, the composite system retains a portion of its CO₂ adsorption capacity while continuing to deliver catalytic activity. The approach is thus critical for designing materials that can bridge the gap between carbon capture and CO₂ utilization.     

Size controlled synthesis of well-distributed nano-silver on hydroxyapatite using alkanolamine compounds

A well-distributed nano-silver hydroxyapatite composite has been successfully prepared by a one-pot synthesis method. Hydroxyapatite was separately synthesized by a sol-gel method, then impregnated with silver nanoparticles with the mediation of Uncaria gambir Roxb. leaf extract in the presence of three kinds of alkanolamine compound; monoethanolamine (MEA), diethanolamine (DEA), and triethanolamine (TEA) as capping agents. The effect of different capping agents on the properties of the silver nanoparticles and the nano-silver hydroxyapatite composite were studied. UV–visible spectrophotometer analysis exhibited absorbance peaks at 402–439 nm which specifically corresponds to spherical silver nanoparticles. Higher optical absorbance was observed in TEA-capped silver nanoparticles, than in DEA and MEA-capped ones. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis showed a highly crystalline hexagonal structure for hydroxyapatite and no detected metallic silver. However, the presence of 1.65% silver was confirmed by energy dispersive x-ray (EDX) spectroscopy analysis. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis revealed spherical silver nanoparticles with a size range of 2–62 nm (smallest mean diameter of 2 nm) adhered to the hydroxyapatite surface. The TEA capped impregnated silver nanoparticles were the smallest, corresponding to the best capping performance, followed by those capped by DEA and MEA. Small-sized nanoparticles on hydroxyapatite are beneficial for highly antibacterial bone implants.     

纳米SiO_2与有机物分子的亲和性和分散性

介绍纳米SiO2的合成和粒子表面的粗糙形貌以及纳米粒子链具有类似高分子链的弹性力学属性,研究纳米SiO2的亲合性,探讨亲合性对纳米SiO2的分散、改性、应用的影响。研究表明,在极性外加剂(如乙二胺、乙二醇、PEG、PDMS、PTHF、PMMA、PBMA等)存在的情况下,纳米SiO2的弹性粒子链和硅烷醇对SiO2的分散和改性具有显著的影响。带有大烷基侧链的高分子链与SiO2表面的亲合能较低,而带有官能团的高分子链与SiO2表面具有较高的亲合性。     

Analysis of trace mercury in water by solid phase extraction using dithizone modified nanometer titanium dioxide and cold vapor atomic absorption spectrometry

A new method for analysis of trace mercury in water samples was developed, based on the combination of preconcentration/separation using dithizone-modified nanometer titanium dioxide (TiO2) as a solid phase extractant and determination by cold vapor atomic adsorption spectrometry (CVAAS). Dithizone was dissolved with alcohol and loaded on the surface of nano-sized TiO2 powders by stirring. The static adsorption behavior of Hg2 on the dithizone-modified nanoparticles was investigated in detail. It was found that excellent adsorption ratio for Hg2 could be obtained in the pH range of 7-8 with an oscillation time of 15 min, and a 5 mL of 3.5 mol·L-1 HCl solution could quantitatively elute Hg2 from nanometer TiO2 powder. Common coexisting ions caused no obvious influence on the determination of mercury. The mechanisms for the adsorption and desorption were discussed. The detection limit (3σ) for Hg2 was calculated to be 5 ng·L-1. The proposed method was applied to the determination of Hg2 in a mineral water sample and a Zhujiang River water sample. By the standard addition method, the average recoveries were found to be 94.4%-108.3% with RSD (n = 5) of 2.9%-3.5%.