Mechanism of Silation of Silica with Hexamethyldisilazane

Engineered Nanocomposite Coatings: From Water-Soluble Polymer to Advanced Hydrophobic Performances

In this work, a water-soluble (hydrophilic) polymer was used to form a hydrophobic coating on silicon substrates (Si) in a two-step process comprising (i) the transformation of the polymer into an insoluble material and (ii) the structuring of this coating at nanometric and micrometric scales to achieve the desired hydrophobic behavior. Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), a water-soluble commodity polymer, was crosslinked using benzophenone and UV irradiation to produce a water-insoluble PVP coating. The nanometric scale roughness of the coating was achieved by the addition of silica nanoparticles (NPs) in the coating. The micrometric scale roughness was achieved by forming vertical pillars of PVP/NP coating. To prepare these pillars, a perforated polystyrene (PS) template was filled with a PVP/NP suspension. Micrometer scale vertical pillars of PVP/silica NPs were produced by this method, which allowed us to tune the wettability of the surface, by combining the micrometric scale roughness of the pillars to the nanometric scale roughness provided by the nanoparticles at the surface. By adjusting the various experimental parameters, a hydrophobic PVP coating was prepared with a water contact angle of 110°, resulting in an improvement of more than 80% compared to the bare flat film with an equal amount of nanoparticles. This study paves the way for the development of a more simplified experimental approach, relying on a blend of polymers containing PVP and NPs, to form the micro/nano-structured PVP pillars directly after the deposition step and the selective etching of the sacrificial major phase.

Thermally Insulating, Thermal Shock Resistant Calcium Aluminate Phosphate Cement Composites for Reservoir Thermal Energy Storage

This paper presents the use of hydrophobic silica aerogel (HSA) and hydrophilic fly ash cenosphere (FCS) aggregates for improvements in the thermal insulating and mechanical properties of 100- and 250 °C-autoclaved calcium aluminate phosphate (CaP) cement composites reinforced with micro-glass (MGF) and micro-carbon (MCF) fibers for deployment in medium- (100 °C) and high-temperature (250 °C) reservoir thermal energy storage systems. The following six factors were assessed: (1) Hydrothermal stability of HSA; (2) Pozzolanic activity of the two aggregates and MGF in an alkali cement environment; (3) CaP cement slurry heat release during hydration and chemical reactions; (4) Composite phase compositions and phase transitions; (5) Mechanical behavior; (6) Thermal shock (TS) resistance at temperature gradients of 150 and 225 °C. The results showed that hydrophobic trimethylsilyl groups in trimethylsiloxy-linked silica aerogel structure were susceptible to hydrothermal degradation at 250 °C. This degradation was followed by pozzolanic reactions (PR) of HSA, its dissolution, and the formation of a porous microstructure that caused a major loss in the compressive strength of the composites at 250 °C. The pozzolanic activities of FCS and MGF were moderate, and they offered improved interfacial bonding at cement-FCS and cement-MGF joints through a bridging effect by PR products. Despite the PR of MGF, both MGF and MCF played an essential role in minimizing the considerable losses in compressive strength, particularly in toughness, engendered by incorporating weak HSA. As a result, a FCS/HSA ratio of 90/10 in the CaP composite system was identified as the most effective hybrid insulating aggregate composition, with a persistent compressive strength of more than 7 MPa after three TS tests at a 150 °C temperature gradient. This composite displayed thermal conductivity of 0.28 and 0.35 W/mK after TS with 225 and 150 °C thermal gradients, respectively. These values, below the TC of water (TC water = 0.6 W/mK), were measured under water-saturated conditions for applications in underground reservoirs. However, considering the hydrothermal disintegration of HSA at 250 °C, these CaP composites have potential applications for use in thermally insulating, thermal shock-resistant well cement in a mid-temperature range (100 to 175 °C) reservoir thermal energy storage system.

Preparation and Asymmetric Induction Evaluation of the First Ephedrine-Based Ligands Immobilized on Magnetic Nanoparticles

Herein, the synthesis and catalytic activity of two ephedrine-based catalysts and two ephedrine-based magnetic nanoparticle-supported catalysts are reported. All catalysts developed were tested in the addition of diethylzinc to aromatic aldehydes and in the Henry reaction. The homogeneous catalysts showed moderate catalytic activity in the organozinc addition and good activity in the Henry reaction, whereas in the case of the nanocatalyst, it was not effective in the addition of diethylzinc to aldehydes and gave reasonable results in the Henry reaction. Moreover, the nanocatalyst remained unchanged over the course of up to three catalytic cycles. To the best of our knowledge, the proposed system is the first recyclable ephedrine-based magnetic nanocatalyst employed in an enantioselective reaction.

Linear β-amino alcohol catalyst anchored on functionalized magnetite nanoparticles for enantioselective addition of dialkylzinc to aromatic aldehydes

A linear β-amino alcohol ligand, previously found to be a very efficient catalyst for enantioselective addition of dialkylzinc to aromatic aldehydes, has been anchored on differently functionalized superparamagnetic core–shell magnetite–silica nanoparticles (1a and 1b). Its catalytic activity in the addition of dialkylzinc to aldehydes has been evaluated, leading to promising results, especially in the case of 1b for which the recovery by simple magnetic decantation and reuse was successfully verified.

The catalytic activity of a linear β-amino alcohol ligand anchored on functionalized magnetite/silica core–shell nanoparticles has been evaluated in the addition of dialkylzinc to aldehydes leading to promising results.

Functionalized Magnetic Nanoparticles as Catalysts for Enantioselective Henry Reaction

With the aim to easily recover and reuse the catalyst, an efficient amino alcohol catalyst previously tested in the asymmetric addition of diethylzinc to several aromatic aldehydes has been immobilized on proper functionalized superparamagnetic core-shell magnetite-silica nanoparticles and employed in the Henry reaction in the semi-homogeneous phase. The nanocatalyst exhibits a promising catalytic activity that remains unchanged in the three catalytic cycles performed. The results prove that highly efficient catalysts, by being immobilized on suitable magnetic nanosupports, can be easily recovered and reused, maintaining their catalytic behavior.

Wear-resistant and antismudge superoleophobic coating on polyethylene terephthalate substrate using SiO2 nanoparticles

It is of interest to create superoleophobic surfaces that exhibit high oil contact angle, low contact angle hysteresis, high wear resistance, antismudge properties, and optical transparency for industrial applications. In the superoleophobic surfaces developed to date, the mechanical durability data is lacking. By dip-coating polyethylene terephthalate substrate with hydrophobic SiO2 nanoparticles and methylphenyl silicone resin, followed by O2 plasma treatment and vapor deposition of 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorooctyltrichlorosilane, a durable superoleophobic surface was fabricated. The degree of superoleophobicity was found to be dependent on the particle-to-binder ratio. The coatings were found to exhibit wear resistance on microscale and macroscale, antismudge properties, and transparency.

Preparation and characterization of superhydrophobic surfaces based on hexamethyldisilazane-modified nanoporous alumina

Superhydrophobic nanoporous anodic aluminum oxide (alumina) surfaces were prepared using treatment with vapor-phase hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS). Nanoporous alumina substrates were first made using a two-step anodization process. Subsequently, a repeated modification procedure was employed for efficient incorporation of the terminal methyl groups of HMDS to the alumina surface. Morphology of the surfaces was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, showing hexagonally ordered circular nanopores with approximately 250 nm in diameter and 300 nm of interpore distances. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy-attenuated total reflectance analysis showed the presence of chemically bound methyl groups on the HMDS-modified nanoporous alumina surfaces. Wetting properties of these surfaces were characterized by measurements of the water contact angle which was found to reach 153.2 ± 2°. The contact angle values on HMDS-modified nanoporous alumina surfaces were found to be significantly larger than the average water contact angle of 82.9 ± 3° on smooth thin film alumina surfaces that underwent the same HMDS modification steps. The difference between the two cases was explained by the Cassie-Baxter theory of rough surface wetting.

Segmental dynamics in poly(methyl acrylate) on silica: effect of surface treatment

The effect of surface treatment on the dynamics of adsorbed poly(methyl acrylate) (PMA) was studied using deuterium NMR and temperature-modulated differential scanning calorimetry (TMDSC). The solid-state deuterium NMR experiments were performed using PMA-d(3), deuterated on the methyl group. The line shape changes for PMA-d(3) were followed as a function of temperature and compared for the polymer on untreated silica, organically modified (treated) silica (reacted with hexamethyltrisilazane), and in bulk. The dynamics of PMA-d(3) on treated silica was found to be intermediate between that of the polymer adsorbed on untreated silica and that of the bulk polymer, i.e., the treated silica caused a restriction on the dynamics of the polymer as compared to bulk, but not as dramatically as that on untreated silica. Similar to the dynamics on untreated silica, the dynamics on treated silica showed a broad heterogeneity with a superposition of more-mobile and less-mobile components. Two molecular mass samples were also studied (38 and 77 kDa) with the molecular mass dependence on the treated or untreated silica being weaker than that in bulk. The TMDSC thermograms of the samples were consistent with the NMR results, with the glass transition region for the PMA-d(3) on the treated silica being in between that of the bulk and that on the untreated silica.

Investigations of chemical modifications of amino-terminated organic films on silicon substrates and controlled protein immobilization

Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy by grazing-angle attenuated total reflection (FTIR-GATR), ellipsometry, atomic force microscopy (AFM), UV-visible spectroscopy, and fluorescence microscopy were employed to investigate chemical modifications of amino-terminated organic thin films on silicon substrates, protein immobilization, and the biological activity and hydrolytic stability of immobilized proteins. Amino-terminated organic films were prepared on silicon wafers by self-assembling 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) in anhydrous toluene. Surface amino groups were derivatized into three different linkers: N-hydroxysuccinimide (NHS) ester, hydrazide, and maleimide ester groups. UV-visible absorption measurements and fluorescence microscopy revealed that more than 40% of surface amino groups were chemically modified. Protein immobilization was carried out on modified APTES films containing these linkers via coupling with primary amines (-NH(2)) in intact monoclonal rabbit immunoglobulin G (IgG), the aldehyde (-CHO) of an oxidized carbohydrate residue in IgG, or the sulfhydryl (-SH) of fragmented half-IgG, respectively. FTIR spectra contain vibrational signatures of these functional groups present in modified APTES films and immobilized IgGs. Changes in the APTES film thickness after chemical modifications and protein immobilization were also observed by ellipsometric measurements. The biological activity and long-term hydrolytic stability of immobilized IgGs on modified APTES films were estimated by fluorescence measurements of an adsorbed antigen, fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-labeled goat anti-rabbit IgG (FITC-Ab). Our results indicate that the FITC-Ab binding capacity of half-IgG immobilized via maleimide groups is greater than that of the oxidized IgG and the intact IgG immobilized via hydrazide and NHS ester groups, respectively. In addition, IgGs immobilized using all coupling chemistries were hydrolytically stable in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS).

"Dip-Pen" nanolithography on semiconductor surfaces

Dip-Pen Nanolithography (DPN) uses an AFM tip to deposit organic molecules through a meniscus onto an underlying substrate under ambient conditions. Thus far, the methodology has been developed exclusively for gold using alkyl or aryl thiols as inks. This study describes the first application of DPN to write organic patterns with sub-100 nm dimensions directly onto two different semiconductor surfaces: silicon and gallium arsenide. Using hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS) as the ink in the DPN procedure, we were able to utilize lateral force microscopy (LFM) images to differentiate between oxidized semiconductor surfaces and patterned areas with deposited monolayers of HMDS. The choice of the silazane ink is a critical component of the process since adsorbates such as trichlorosilanes are incompatible with the water meniscus and polymerize during ink deposition. This work provides insight into additional factors, such as temperature and adsorbate reactivity, that control the rate of the DPN process and paves the way for researchers to interface organic and biological structures generated via DPN with electronically important semiconductor substrates.