Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering,
University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221, USA
| Nanomaterials such as nanoparticles and nanotubes can be surface functionalized for many novel engineering applications. In bio-probe applications, a functional group can be deposited on magnetic nanoparticles. The deposited thin film can provide appropriate chemical bondings for the attachment of antigen and DNA in instant food test. Nanotubes have been widely used in polymer composites. Due to their high surface energies, nanotubes can severely cluster and in turn degrade the mechanical properties. Coating of a thin polymer film on nanotube surfaces can greatly enhance dispersion and interfacial bonding, resulting in significantly improved strength/nanotubes are desired that can be applied to model systems for both fundamental study and practical applications. In this paper, experimental results on the deposition of polymer films on various nanoparticles and nanotubes are presented. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), time of flight secondary ion spectroscopy (TOFSIMS), and infrared (FTIR) has been performed to characterize the coated and uncoated nanopaticles and nanotubes. Fundamental deposition mechanisms involving interfaces and related properties are also presented. |
full paper (pdf, 368 Kb)