Polystyrene nanoparticles prepared by nanoprecipitation: A recyclable template for fabricating hollow silica

• Published in: Journal of industrial and engineering chemistry (Seoul, Korea) Vol. 97; pp. 307 - 315
• Main Authors: Vu, Khanh B., Phung, Thanh Khoa, Tran, Thao T.T., Mugemana, Clement, Giang, Ha N., Nhi, Truong Le Phuc
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 25.05.2021; 한국공업화학회
• Subjects: Hollow silica; Nanoprecipitation; Polystyrene; Porous materials; Recyclable template; 화학공학; Nanoprecipitation; Hollow silica; Polystyrene; Recyclable template; Porous materials
• ISSN: 1226-086X; 1876-794X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jiec.2021.02.010

[Display omitted] •Polystyrene nanoparticles produced by nanoprecipitation were applied for the fabrication of the hollow silica nanoparticles.•Polystyrene nanoparticles were recycled and reused as a template to make the hollow silica nanoparticles.•Cetrimonium bromide linker plays a crucial role in the deposition of silica shells on polystyrene cores.•Size of polystyrene nanoparticles was controlled by the concentration of polystyrene, linker, and precipitation technique.•Selection of a proper ratio of THF to water is essential in nanoprecipitation to obtain the polystyrene nanoparticles. Polystyrene was synthesized and applied as a template for fabricating hollow silica nanoparticles. Organic solvent and water were used as a solvent and an anti-solvent, respectively, to produce the polystyrene nanoparticles via. nanoprecipitation technique. The influence of precipitation method (one-shot or drop), solvent for dissolution of polystyrene, and concentration of polystyrene or CTAB linker on the diameter of polystyrene nanoparticles was investigated. The hollow silica nanoparticles were fabricated using the as-made polystyrene nanoparticles as a template with the help of CTAB linker. Polystyrene was recovered by the extraction of polystyrene@SiO2 composite with the tetrahydrofuran solvent, and the recovered polystyrene was re-used to make the polystyrene nanoparticles as a template for fabricating hollow silica nanoparticles. Our study can be applied for other types of polymeric materials as long as those polymeric materials form nanoparticles via. nanoprecipitation technique. In comparison with the polystyrene hard template prepared by emulsion polymerization, the size of polystyrene nanoparticles produced by the nanoprecipitation technique can be well-tuned by changing the polystyrene and linker concentrations.