Abstract
Metal oxide nanoparticles (MONPs) are used in a variety of applications including drug formulations, paint, sensors and biomedical devices due to their unique physicochemical properties. One of the major problems with their widespread implementation is their uncontrolled agglomeration. One approach to reduce agglomeration is to alter their surface chemistry with a proper functionality in an environmentally friendly way. In this study, the influence of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) treatment on the dispersion of ZnO and TiO2 nanoparticle (NP) agglomerates as a function of temperature is studied. The H2O2 treatment of the MONPs increases the density of hydroxyl (–OH) groups on the NP surface, as verified with FTIR spectroscopy. The influence of heating on the dispersion of H2O2-treated ZnO and TiO2 NPs is investigated using dynamic light scattering. The untreated and H2O2-treated ZnO and TiO2 NP suspensions were heated from 30 °C to 90 °C at 5 °C intervals to monitor the breakdown of large aggregates into smaller aggregates and individual nanoparticles. It was shown that the combined effect of hydroxylation and heating enhances the dispersion of ZnO and TiO2 NPs in water.
Highlights
Dispersion of metal oxide nanoparticles (MONPs) in aqueous media has attracted a considerable amount of interest due to their potential application in drug systems [1], gene therapy [2], sensing [3], and paint and pigments [4]
We demonstrated that the treatment of ZnO NPs with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) affected the surface properties and as a result the cytotoxicity of the ZnO NPs was found to decrease [20]
A new treatment process to overcome the problem of agglomeration of ZnO and TiO2 NPs by treating them with hydrogen peroxide and heating up to 90 °C was demonstrated
Summary
Dispersion of metal oxide nanoparticles (MONPs) in aqueous media has attracted a considerable amount of interest due to their potential application in drug systems [1], gene therapy [2], sensing [3], and paint and pigments [4]. Similar to other nanometer scale materials, they tend to agglomerate and form large aggregates during or after their preparation. The degree of the agglomeration is mostly governed by the synthesis method, which defines their surface properties. During the synthesis processes or in subsequent process steps, the agglomeration of primary particles occurs as a result of the weak bonding between NPs. During the synthesis processes or in subsequent process steps, the agglomeration of primary particles occurs as a result of the weak bonding between NPs These primary aggregates form larger, strongly bonded micrometer size aggregates.
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