ABSTRACT
The reusability of hybrid core-shell microgels, whose core surfaces were decorated with gold nanoparticles, was investigated in terms of catalysis activity. Hybrid core-shell microgels composed of a rigid core and water-swollen gel shell endowed the immobilized gold nanoparticles with a high dispersion stability, which resulted in excellent catalytic activity. In contrast to free Au nanoparticles and conventional hybrid microgels, where the Au nanoparticles are randomly distributed over the entire microgel templates, the hydrogel shell part of the hybrid core-shell microgels suppressed the aggregation between the microgels and Au nanoparticles in individual microgels, which improved the reusability for the catalysis reaction. The results of this study should help to develop advanced catalyst systems that require high reusability even when the chemical reactions occur in aqueous solution and external stimuli are applied.
ABSTRACT
Internal microscopic structures of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide-co-tris(2,2'-bipyridyl))ruthenium(II) complex microgels were investigated using small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) in the extended q-range of 0.07 ≤ q/nm(-1) ≤ 20. The microgels were prepared by aqueous free-radical precipitation polymerization, resulting in formation of monodispersed, submicrometer-sized microgels, which was confirmed by transmission electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering. To reveal the changes in the microscopic structures of the microgels during swelling/deswelling or dispersing/flocculating oscillation, the redox state of Ru(bpy)3 complexes was fixed in the microgels using Ce(IV) or Ce(III) ions under high ionic strength (1.5 M) during the SAXS measurements. The scattering intensity of the microgels manifested five different structural features. In particular, the correlation length (ξ), which was obtained from the fitting analysis using the Ornstein-Zernike equation, of the microgels both in the reduced and oxidized Ru(bpy)3 states exhibited divergent-like behavior. In addition, a low-q peak centered at q ≈ 5 nm(-1) did not appear clearly in both the reduced [Ru(bpy)3](2+) and oxidized [Ru(bpy)3](3+) states, indicating that the formation of a polymer-rich domain was suppressed; thus, Ru(bpy)3 complexes can be active even though the microgels are deswollen or flocculated during the oscillation reaction.
ABSTRACT
Internal structures of thermosensitive microgels and their hybrid counterparts that contain Au nanoparticles are investigated by means of small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). Thermosensitive cationic microgels were synthesized by aqueous free radical precipitation polymerization from N-isopropylacrylamide and 3-(methacrylamino) propyltrimethylammonium chloride used as monomers. Using the microgels as templates, Au nanoparticles were synthesized in situ, using the cationic sites in the microgel to nucleate particle growth. To obtain different types of the hybrid microgels, Au nanoparticles were synthesized in the presence of the microgels by changing the reduction conditions of the precursor ions, such as temperature and species of reducing reagent. The hybrid microgels were characterized mainly by TEM and SAXS. For SAXS investigation, the hybrid microgels were analyzed in the wide q-range of 0.07 nm(-1) < q < 20 nm(-1), where q is the magnitude of the scattering vector. A quantitative description of the scattering intensities, I(q), for the nonhybrid microgels requires a sum of five components having different physical origins. An upturn increase of the forward intensity originates from the interface of microgels, obeying the Porod law, I(q) â q(-4). An additional Guinier term found in q < 0.2 nm(-1) seems to arise from solidlike density fluctuation due to the inhomogeneities of chemical cross-links. The power-law behavior manifested in the low- to intermediate-q range is directly linked with the fractal nature of the swollen (coil) polymer networks and well described by the Ornstein-Zernike equation. Two interference peaks centered at q ≈ 5 nm (-1) and q ≈ 15 nm(-1) are likely to reflect inter- and intrachain correlations of pNIPAm, respectively, which are formally fitted by pseudo-Voigt equations. As for the hybrid microgels, a pronounced new contribution from the Au nanoparticles emerges, which calls for an additional scattering component describing polydisperse spheres having a homogeneous internal electron density distribution. The width of the Gaussian distribution for the radius of the Au nanoparticles evaluated from the SAXS data turns out to be consistent with those obtained with TEM observation.
