The features of the formation of the hybrid nanostructures of C60 fullerene and amphiphilic copolymer of N-vinylpyrrolidone with (di)methacrylates in isopropyl alcohol and its mixtures with water

Abstract

The aggregation of the amphiphilic copolymer N-vinylpyrrolidone with lauryl methacrylate and triethylene glycol dimethacrylate in isopropyl alcohol and its mixtures with water was studied by the dynamic light scattering and transmission electron microscopy. It was shown that the aggregation of amphiphilic macromolecules was enhanced at increase of the media polarity. The TEM images of the terpolymer aggregates demonstrated the presence of spherical shape particles with diameter ca. 50 and 300–500 nm after evaporation of isopropyl alcohol and isopropyl alcohol-water mixture of 60:40 vol% composition, respectively. The fullerene hybrid macromolecular structures were produced owing to spontaneous aggregation of the fullerene C60 and the terpolymer colloids. According to dynamic light scattering (DLS), in isopropyl alcohol, the monodisperse C60-copolymer structure was formed in which the fullerene was held by the copolymer particles due to hydrophobic interactions. According to the electronic absorption spectroscopy, the encapsulated fullerene kept its electronic structure in isopropyl alcohol in contrast to the isopropyl alcohol-water mixtures. The fullerene absorption band at λ 330 nm shifted to the red region due to donor-acceptor interaction between the terpolymer and C60, and the absorption band appears in the 400–500-nm region as a result of the fullerene cluster formation in the isopropyl alcohol-water mixtures. Stable macromolecular hybrid nanostructures of the amorphous fullerene produced in isopropyl alcohol were spherical particles and uneven surface. In 60:40 vol% isopropyl alcohol-water mixture, the fullerene as clusters of crystalline nature with a size of ~50 nm was found.