microemulsion polymerization

Specification

Principle of technology

Microemulsions in contrast to normal dispersions, are thermodynamically stable two phase systems. Typically, a precursor solution is dispersed in an immiscible continuous phase by modest mechanical forces and the help of surface modifiers. The dispersed droplets are then induced into forming particles by crosslinking or polymerization (hardening process) of the precursor liquid. Slow as well as fast hardening processes can lead to good particle quality. The size distribution of droplets can be very narrow and the absolute particle size can be tuned below 100 nm.

Materials that can be processed

Acrylamide and other acrylic monomers: hardened by radical polymerization

Silica and functionalized silica derivatives: hardened by a sol-gel process

Metal oxides (titania, tungsten oxide, iron oxide): hardened by a sol-gel process

Application examples

Functionalized nanoparticles and fluorescent nanoparticles

Cell membrane permeable RNA transfection reagents and sensor systems

Drug delivery formulations

Scanning electron microscope (SEM) picture of trimethylsilyl-propyne nanoparticles