Ingenieurwissenschaften und zugeordnete Tätigkeiten
Filtern
Dokumenttyp
- Zeitschriftenartikel (6)
- Vortrag (2)
- Posterpräsentation (1)
Schlagworte
- SAXS (9) (entfernen)
Organisationseinheit der BAM
Eingeladener Vortrag
- nein (2)
Herein, a simple one-pot procedure is reported to obtain aqueous zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticle dispersions from ZnO nanoparticles dispersed in cyclohexane. In the process, polyoxyethylene (20) sorbitan monooleate (polysorbate 80, Tween 80) functions as a phase transfer agent and colloidal stabilizer. The particles grow in a defined manner during the transfer, presumably via coalescence. The final particle radii are tuneable in the range from 2.3 ± 0.1 nm to 5.7 ± 0.1 nm depending on the incubation time of the dispersion at 90 °C. Small-angle X-ray scattering is employed to determine the particle radius distributions before and after phase transfer. The larger ZnO particle radii are associated with a redshift of the optical bandgap and luminescence emission, as expected for semiconductor nanoparticles. The particles presented here exhibit a relative size distribution width of 20%, rendering them attractive for applications in, e.g., biology or catalysis. The latter application is demonstrated at the photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue dye.
This paper reports the formation of zinc phosphate nanoparticles from the artificial digestion of zinc chloride. Initially, the formation of amorphous primary particles with a mean radius of 1.1 nm is observed, alongside the formation of larger, protein stabilized aggregates. These aggregates, with a radius of gyration of 37 nm, are observed after 5 minutes of exposure to artificial saliva and are shown to be colloidally stable for a minimum time of two weeks. The initially formed primary particles are thought to consist of amorphous zinc phosphate, which is then transformed into crystalline Zn3(PO4)2·4H2O over the course of two weeks. Our results demonstrate that the interaction of inorganic salts with bodily fluids can induce the formation of de novo nanoparticles, which in turn, provides insights into how zinc‐enriched foods may also facilitate the formation of nanoparticles upon contact with saliva. As such, this may be considered as an undesirable (bio)mineralization.
ZnO nanoparticles are found in different food and consumer products, and their toxicological effects are still under investigation. It is therefore important to understand their behavior in the gastrointestinal tract. Here, we used an in vitro model to assess the physicochemical fate of ZnO nanoparticles during the digestive process in artificial saliva, stomach juice, and intestinal juice. Atomic absorption spectrometry and small-angle X-ray scattering were employed to investigate two ZnO nanomaterials, one intensively characterized reference material and soluble ZnCl2 in a broad range of concentrations between 25 and 1000 μg/mL in the intestinal fluid. Because food components may influence the behavior of nanomaterials in the gastrointestinal tract, starch, milk powder, and olive oil were used to mimic carbohydrates, protein, and fat, respectively. Additionally, ion release of all Zn species was assessed in cell culture media and compared to artificial intestinal juice to investigate relevance of typical cell culture conditions in ZnO nanotoxicology. ZnCl2 as well as the ZnO species were present as particles in artificial saliva but were solubilized completely in the acidic stomach juice. Interestingly, in the intestinal fluid a concentration-independent de novo formation of particles in the nanoscale range was shown. This was the case for all particles as well as for ZnCl2, regardless of the concentration used. Neither of the food components affected the behavior of any Zn species. On the contrary, all Zn species showed a Zn-concentration-dependent ion release in common cell culture medium. This questions the suitability of cell culture studies to investigate the effect of ZnO nanoparticles on intestinal cells. Our results show that Zn-containing nanoparticles reach the intestine. This underlines the importance of determining the influence of the test environment on nanoparticle fate.
We report on ultrasmall zinc oxide single-crystalline nanoparticles of narrow size distribution and long-term colloidal stability. These oleate-stabilized nanoparticles were synthesized using microwave-assisted synthesis for 5 min, corresponding to a 99% decrease in synthesis time, when compared to the conventional synthesis method. It was observed that the average particle radius increases from 2.6 ± 0.1 to 3.8 ± 0.1 nm upon increasing synthesis temperature from 125 to 200 °C. This change also corresponded to observed changes in the optical band gap and the fluorescence energy of the particles, from 3.44 ± 0.01 to 3.36 ± 0.01 eV and from 2.20 ± 0.01 to 2.04 ± 0.01 eV, respectively. Small-angle X-ray scattering, dynamic light scattering, and UV–vis and fluorescence spectroscopy were employed for particle characterization. Debye–Scherrer analysis of the X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern reveals a linear increase of the crystallite size with synthesis temperature. The consideration of the convolution of a Lorentz function with a Gaussian function for data correction of the instrumental peak broadening has a considerable influence on the values for the crystallite size. Williamson–Hall XRD analyses in the form of the uniform deformation model, uniform stress deformation model, and uniform deformation energy density model revealed a substantial increase of strain, stress, and deformation energy density of the crystallites with decreasing size. Exponential and power law models were utilized for quantification of strain, stress, and deformation energy density.
Zinc oxide (ZnO) as a wide-bandgap II-VI semiconductor finds application in areas like optoelectronics, photocatalysis as well as in detection systems. While band-gap engineering in macroscopic ZnO can be performed by alloying, the band-gap of ZnO nanoparticles is also dependent on their size. Since small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) provides a much higher resolution in terms of ultra-small nanoparticle size analysis compared to other techniques, it allows for a careful examination of the correlation between particle size and band-gap.
We report on the microwave-assisted synthesis of oleate-capped, photoluminescent zinc oxide nanoparticles with adjustable size as dispersions in organic solvents. The spherical particles were obtained by hydrolysis of the metal precursor in presence of a strong base at temperatures above the solvent’s boiling point. Hence, the reaction is dramatically accelerated and within seconds – instead of hours at lower temperatures –, narrowly dispersed particle systems are yielded. The particles’ sizes as derived from SAXS strongly depend on the reaction temperature and time. Choosing the right reaction conditions, the particle size and thus their band gap can be finely tuned. A size increase can be achieved both by increasing the reaction temperature and the reaction time.
See Figure 1 for an exemplary comparison of five-minute syntheses at different temperatures. Here, the yielded particles display diameters between 5.0 and 7.6 nm and corresponding band-gaps of 3.32 up to 3.41 eV. The size increase is accompanied by a red-shift of the UV/Vis absorption edges and fluorescence emission.
Furthermore, these particles can be transferred into water by coating with polysorbates.
We report on etching of polyacrylic acid-stabilised silver nanoparticles in the presence of glutathione (GSH). The initial particles with a radius of 3.2 nm and consisting of ∼8100 silver atoms dissolve in a two-step reaction mechanism while in parallel smaller silver particles with a radius of 0.65 nm and consisting of 60 to 70 silver atoms were formed. The kinetics of the etching of the initial particles, accompanied by formation of smaller silver particles was interpreted based on in situ, time-resolved small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) experiments.
Ever since increasing a reaction’s yield while shortening the reaction time is the main objective in synthesis optimization. Microwave reactors meet these demands. In literature however their usage is under discussion due to claims of the existence of non-thermal effects resulting from the microwave radiation. Especially for nano-reference-material syntheses it is of crucial importance to be aware of influences on the reaction pathway. Therefore, we compare ultra-small silver nanoparticles with mean radii of 3 nm, synthesized via conventional and microwave heating.
We employed a versatile one-pot polyol synthesis of poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) stabilized silver nanoparticles, which display superior catalytic properties. No microwave specific effects in terms of particle size distribution characteristics, as derived by small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and dynamic light scattering (DLS), are revealed. Due to the microwave reactor’s characteristics of a closed system, syntheses can be carried out at temperatures beyond the solvent’s boiling point. Particle formation was accelerated by a factor of 30 by increasing the reaction temperature from 200 °C to 250 °C. The particle growth process follows a cluster coalescence mechanism.
A post-synthetic incubation step at 250 °C induces a further growth of the particles while the size distribution broadens. Thus, utilization of microwave reactors enables an enormous decrease of the reaction time as well as the opportunity of tuning the particles’ size. Possibly, decomposition of the stabilizing ligand at elevated temperatures results in reduced yields. A temperature of 250 °C and a corresponding reaction time of 30 s represent a compromise between short reaction times and high yields.
Reaction procedures have been improved to achieve higher yields and shorter reaction times: one possibility is the usage of microwave reactors. In the literature, this is under discussion, for example, nonthermal effects resulting from the microwave radiation are claimed. Especially for the synthesis of nanomaterials, it is of crucial importance to be aware of influences on the reaction pathway. Therefore, we compare the syntheses of ultra-small silver nanoparticles via conventional and microwave heating. We employed a versatile one-pot polyol synthesis of poly(acrylic acid)-stabilized silver nanoparticles, which display superior catalytic properties. No microwave-specific effects in terms of particle size distribution characteristics, as derived by small-angle X-ray scattering and dynamic light scattering, are revealed. Because of the characteristics of a closed system, microwave reactors give access to elevated temperatures and pressures. Therefore, the speed of particle formation can be increased by a factor of 30 when the reaction temperature is increased from 200 to 250 °C. The particle growth process follows a cluster coalescence mechanism. A postsynthetic incubation step at 250 °C induces a further growth of the particles while the size distribution broadens. Thus, utilization of microwave reactors enables an enormous decrease of the reaction time as well as the opportunity of tuning the particle size. Possibly, decomposition of the stabilizing ligand at elevated temperatures results in reduced yields. A compromise between short reaction times and high yields can be found at a temperature of 250 °C and a corresponding reaction time of 30 s.