• Transactions on Electrical and Electronic Materials
• /
• v.10 no.3
• /
• pp.85-88
• /
• 2009

This report demonstrates the immobilization of uniformly sized gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) on UV cross-linked poly(4-vinylpyridine) (P4VP) polymer thin films and the preparation of micropatterned structures of AuNPs on these films. The polymer thin films were prepared by a spin-coating of P4VP onto a cleaned silicon wafer surface. Upon UV irradiation, these films were then photo cross-linked. Gold nanoparticles were immobilized by immersing the polymer surface in a colloidal solution of gold nanoparticles stabilized by citric acid. The morphology of the films and the immobilization of AuNPs were studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and UV-visible spectroscopic techniques. The micropatterned gold structures that were produced on the polymer surface are delineated by combining with the photolithographic method. While untreated and simply spin coated films were physisorbed and unstable that could be easily removed by rinsing with a solvent, the cross-linked and AuNPs immobilized P4VP films were found to be highly stable even after repeated solvent extractions.

• Macromolecular Research
• /
• v.16 no.8
• /
• pp.695-703
• /
• 2008

Nanoparticles have tremendous potential in cancer prevention, detection and augmenting existing treatments. They can target tumors, carry imaging capability to document the presence of tumors, sense pathophysiological defects in tumor cells, deliver therapeutic genes or drugs based on the tumor characteristics, respond to external triggers to release an appropriate agent, document the tumor response, and identify the residual tumor cells. Nanoparticles < 30 nanometers in diameter show unexpected and unique properties. Furthermore, particles < 5 nanometers in size can easily penetrate cells as well as living tissues and organs. This study evaluated the safety of nano materials in a living body and the relationship between the living tissue and synthetic nano materials by examining the in-vitro cytotoxicity of poly(lactic-co-glycolic) acid (PLGA) nano-spheres and fluorescein isothiocynate(FITC)-labeled dendrimers as polymer nanoparticles. PLGA was chosen because it has been used extensively for biodegradable nanoparticles on account of its outstanding bio-compatibility and its acceptance as an FDA approved material. The dendrimer was chosen because it can carry a molecule that recognizes cancer cells, a therapeutic agent that can kill those cells, and a molecule that recognizes the signals of cell death. Cytotoxicity in L929 mouse fibroblasts was monitored using MTT assay. Microscopic observations were also carried out to observe cell growth. All assays yielded meaningful results and the PLGA nanoparticles showed less cytotoxicity than the dendrimer. These nano-particles ranged in size from 10 to 100 nm according to microscopy and spectroscopic methods.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
• /
• v.21 no.4
• /
• pp.418-422
• /
• 1998

Aim of this work is to prepare poly(DL-lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) nanoparticles by dialysis method without surfactant and to investigate drug loading capacity and drug release. The size of PLGA nanoparticles was 269.9 $\pm$118.7 nm in intensity average and the morphology of PLGA nanoparticies was spherical shape from the observation of SEM and TEM. In the effect of drug loading contents on the particle size distribution, PLGA nanoparticles were monomodal pattern with narrow size distribution in the empty and lower drug loading nanoparticles whereas bi- or trimodal pattern was showed in the higher drug loading ones. Release of clonazepam from PLGA nanoparticles with higher drug loading contents was slower than that with lower loading contents.

• Journal of Adhesion and Interface
• /
• v.16 no.1
• /
• pp.6-14
• /
• 2015

In this study, physically and chemically stable core-crosslinked amphiphilic polymer (CCAP) nanoparticles were prepared using amphiphilic reactive precursors via soap-free emulsion process. Obtained CCAP nanoparticles were used as templates for synthesis of nanostructured $TiO_2$ nanoparticles. First, CCAP nanoparticles dispersed aqueous solutions were mixed with titanium isopropoxide to prepare stable organic-inorganic hybrid sols, and then obtained sols were spin coated onto glass substrate to prepare hybrid thin films onto glass, and then hybrid thin films were calcinated at various temperature to remove CCAP. Nanostructure of calcinated thin fims were examined by SEM. To study effect of CCAP nanoparticles on nanostructure of $TiO_2$ nanoparticles, the morphology of $TiO_2$ nanoparticles prepared using various CCAP templates was compared with that of $TiO_2$ nanoparticles prepared using conventional organic template, nonionic surfactant, Triton X-100.

• Carbon letters
• /
• v.25
• /
• pp.1-13
• /
• 2018

Gold functionalized graphene oxide (GOAu) nanoparticles were reinforced in acrylonitrile-butadiene rubbers (NBR) via solution and melt mixing methods. The synthesized NBR-GOAu nanocomposites have shown significant improvements in their rate of curing, mechanical strength, thermal stability and electrical properties. The homogeneous dispersion of GOAu nanoparticles in NBR has been considered responsible for the enhanced thermal conductivity, thermal stability, and mechanical properties of NBR nanocomposites. In addition, the NBR-GOAu nanocomposites were able to show a decreasing trend in their dielectric constant (${\varepsilon}^{\prime}$) and electrical resistance on straining within a range of 10-70%. The decreasing trend in ${\varepsilon}^{\prime}$ is attributed to the decrease in electrode and interfacial polarization on straining the nanocomposites. The decreasing trend in electrical resistance in the nanocomposites is likely due to the attachment of Au nanoparticles to the surface of GO sheets which act as electrical interconnects. The Au nanoparticles have been proposed to function as ball rollers in-between GO nanosheets to improve their sliding on each other and to improve contacts with neighboring GO nanosheets, especially on straining the nanocomposites. The NBR-GOAu nanocomposites have exhibited piezoelectric gauge factor (${GF_{\varepsilon}}^{\prime}$) of ~0.5, and piezo-resistive gauge factor ($GF_R$) of ~0.9 which clearly indicated that GOAu reinforced NBR nanocomposites are potentially useful in fabrication of structural, high temperature responsive, and stretchable strain-sensitive sensors.

• Macromolecular Research
• /
• v.17 no.6
• /
• pp.403-410
• /
• 2009

Cytotoxicity is a severe problem of cadmium sulfide nanoparticles(CSNPs) for use in biological systems. In the present study, mercaptoacetic acid-coated CSNPs were conjugated with bovine serum albumin (BSA) to improve biocompatibility. The surface properties of the CSNPs and albumin-conjugated CSNPs (ACSNPs) were characterized by XRD, UV, FTIR, EA, TEM and DLS. Human breast cancer cells (KB cells) were then cultured in the presence of the nanoparticles to evaluate the cytotoxicity of CSNPs and ACSNPs. Finally, the fluorescence intensity of the nanoparticles' aqueous solution was examined using a fluorescence spectrometer. The results showed that the cell compatibility and fluorescence intensity of ACSNPs were higher than those of CSNPs. The strongly luminescent features of the biocompatible ACSNPs are promising for use in biological fields such as cellular labeling, intracellular tracking and molecular imaging.

• Multiscale and Multiphysics Mechanics
• /
• v.1 no.1
• /
• pp.65-76
• /
• 2016

In this study, an influence of local variation of nanoparticulate volume fraction on the homogenized elastic properties is investigated. It is well known that interface effect is dependent on the radius and volume fraction of reinforced nanofillers. However, there is no study on the multiscale modeling and analysis of polymer nanocomposites including polydispersed nanoparticles with consideration of interphase zone, which is dependent on the volume fraction of corresponding nanoparticles. As results of numerical examples, it is confirmed that an influence of local variation of nanoparticulate volume fraction should be considered for non-dilute system such as cluster of nanoparticles. Therefore representative volume element analysis is conducted by considering local variation of nanoparticle volume fraction in order to analyze the practical size of cell including hundreds of nanoparticles. It is expected that this study could be extended to the multiparticulate nanocomposite systems including polydispersed nanoparticles.

• Journal of Powder Materials
• /
• v.21 no.3
• /
• pp.179-184
• /
• 2014

In this study, we prepare polymer solar cells incorporating organic ligand-modified Ag nanoparticles (O-AgNPs) highly dispersed in the P3HT:PCBM layer. Ag nanoparticles decorated with water-dispersible ligands (WAgNPs) were also utilized as a control sample. The existence of the ligands on the Ag surface was confirmed by FT-IR spectra. Metal nanoparticles with different surface chemistries exhibited different dispersion tendencies. O-AgNPs were highly dispersed even at high concentrations, whereas W-AgNPs exhibited significant aggregation in the polymer layer. Both dispersion and blending concentration of the Ag nanoparticles in P3HT:PCBM matrix had critical effects on the device performance as well as light absorption. The significant changes in short-circuit current density ($J_{SC}$) of the solar cells seemed to be related to the change in the polymer morphology according to the concentration of AgNPs introduced. These findings suggested the importance of uniform dispersion of plasmonic metal nanoparticles and their blending concentration conditions in order to boost the solar cell performance.

• Biomaterials and Biomechanics in Bioengineering
• /
• v.1 no.2
• /
• pp.95-104
• /
• 2014

The objective of this study was to evaluate the cytotoxicity of poly (lactic acid) (PLA) nanoparticles. We used a water-soluble, amphiphilic phospholipid polymer, poly (2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine-co-n-butyl methacrylate) (PMB30W), as a stabilizer for the PLA nanoparticles. The PLA nanoparticles and PMB30W-modified PLA (PLA/PMB30W) nanoparticles were prepared by evaporating tetrahydrofuran (THF) from its aqueous solution. Precipitation of the polymers from the aqueous solution produced PLA and PLA/PMB30W nanoparticles with a size distribution of $0.4-0.5{\mu}m$. The partial coverage of PMB30W on the surface of the PLA/PMB30W nanoparticles was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and dynamic light-scattering (DLS). A high-content automated screening assay (240 random fields per group) revealed that the PLA nanoparticles induced apoptosis in a mouse macrophage-like cell line (apoptotic population: 73.9% in 0.8 mg PLA/mL), while the PLA/PMB30W nanoparticles remained relatively non-hazardous in vitro (apoptotic population: 13.8% in 0.8 mg PLA/mL). The reduction of the apoptotic population was attributed to the phosphorylcholine groups in the PMB30W bound to the surface of the nanoparticle. In conclusion, precipitation of PLA in THF aqueous solution enabled the preparation of PLA nanoparticles with similar shapes and size distribution but different surface characteristics. PMB30W was an effective stabilizer and surface modifier, which reduced the cytotoxicity of PLA nanoparticles by enabling their avoidance of the mononuclear phagocyte system.

• Macromolecular Research
• /
• v.15 no.1
• /
• pp.39-43
• /
• 2007

The amphiphilic block copolymer (PEtOz-PCL) of poly(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline) (PEtOz) and poly(${\varepsilon}$-caprolactone) (PCL) formed spherical micellar structures with an average diameter of 26 nm in aqueous phase. Au and Pd nanoparticles with an average diameter of $2{\sim}3nm$ were prepared by using the PEtOz-PCL micelle consisting of a PEtOz shell and PCL core. The Au nanoparticles of PEtOz-PCL micelles in aqueous phase could be transferred into organic phase by using n-dodecanethiol. The use of the Pd-NP/PEtOz-PCL micelle as a nanoreactor for Suzuki cross-coupling reaction was investigated.