Popis: |
Composite nanostructured particles can be produced by polymerization of monomer miniemulsion droplets loaded with inorganic nanoparticles. The article gives an overview on the development of a scalable continuous process for the production of such hybrid nanoparticles via miniemulsion polymerization. Different possibilities for the necessary surface modification of the inorganic material are discussed in detail. Furthermore, the influence of the surfactant concentration on the droplet size after emulsification as well as on the nucleation mechanisms during polymerization is highlighted. Possible process routes for the emulsification of the nanoparticle-loaded monomer phase are compared taking into account different process and material parameters, such as energy consumption, abrasion, dispersed phase viscosity, inorganic particle load and size, and morphology of the resulting hybrid particles. The possibility of an industrial implementation via an integrated high pressure homogenization process and a subsequent continuous polymerization are presented. |