Porous hollow TiO2 microparticles for photocatalysis: exploiting novel ABC triblock terpolymer templates synthesised in supercritical CO2
| Autor: | Thomas M. Bennett, Steven M. Howdle, Leo S Blankenship, Vincenzo Taresco, Rachel L. Atkinson, Matthew J. Derry, Paul D. Topham, Renato V. Gonçalves, Jesum Alves Fernandes, Bethany K Husband, Ryan R. Larder, Higor A. Centurion, Daniel T. W. Toolan |
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| Rok vydání: | 2021 |
| Předmět: |
Materials science
Supercritical carbon dioxide Nanostructure Polymers and Plastics Organic Chemistry Bioengineering Chain transfer 02 engineering and technology 010402 general chemistry 021001 nanoscience & nanotechnology 01 natural sciences Biochemistry Supercritical fluid 0104 chemical sciences Chemical engineering Copolymer Photocatalysis Lamellar structure PROPRIEDADES DOS MATERIAIS 0210 nano-technology Mesoporous material |
| Zdroj: | Repositório Institucional da USP (Biblioteca Digital da Produção Intelectual) Universidade de São Paulo (USP) instacron:USP |
| Popis: | Reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) mediated dispersion polymerisation in supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2) is an efficient and green method for synthesising block copolymer microparticles with internal nanostructures. Here we report for the first time the synthesis of phase separated poly(methyl methacrylate-block-styrene-block-4-vinylpyridine) (PMMA-b-PS-b-P4VP) triblock terpolymer microparticles using a simple two-pot sequential synthesis procedure in scCO2, with high monomer conversions and no purification steps. The microparticles, produced directly and without further processing, show a complex internal nanostructure, appearing as a “lamellar with spheres” [L + S(II)] type morphology. The P4VP block is then exploited as a structure-directing agent for the fabrication of TiO2 microparticles. Through a simple and scalable sol–gel and calcination process we produce hollow TiO2 microparticles with a mesoporous outer shell. When directly compared to porous TiO2 particles fabricated using an equivalent PMMA-b-P4VP diblock copolymer, increased surface area and enhanced photocatalytic efficiencies are observed. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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