Fabrication Of Nanocomposite Materials Using Surface-Initiated Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization

With nanotechnology developing, the research on hybrid and composite nanomaterials has undoubtedly been a field of special interest in the intersection of physics, chemistry, and materials science, of which inorganic/organic nanocomposites with a wide range of interesting properties increasingly become a burgeoning area. As one of its branches, inorganic nanoparticles/polymer composite films and shells possess the potential applications in modifying surface properties. The way to control the diameter, the content and the distribution of nanoparticles in polymer plays a significant role in the development of the fabrication of functional inorganic/organic nanocomposites. Taking into account of the essential relationship between structures and properties, people have to control the structure of materials from microcosm to macroscopy, whereas living radical polymerization, especially atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP), is of interest to a wide spectrum of scholars just because of its merits to control the structure of polymeric materials.In chapter 2, we describe a promising strategy for the controlled synthesis of inorganic nanoparticles/polymer composite materials by the combined use of surface-initiated ATRP and gas/solid reaction. Furthermore, our method was applied to directly fabricate single-layered or multi-layered semiconductor nanoparticles/ polymer composite films with diverse structures. All the above established a solid fundament for the fabrication of multifunctional inorganic/organic nanocomposite materials.In chapter 3, we described the fabrication of CdS-nanoparticle/polystyrene latex through the combined use of surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and gas/solid reaction. The surface-modified with oxirane groups were used as support and grafted Br initiator in water. The resulted CdS-nanoparticle/PS latexs take on a strawberry-like shape in SEM and presented a strong fluorescence property.In chapter 4, we described a general method to produce functional nanoparticle/polymer composite film is reported. Polyglycidyl methacrylate brush grafted on silica substrates through surface-initiated Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization technique are used as support to assemble various types of nanoparticles involving aqueous CdTe nanocrystals, gold nanoparticles and hydrophobic Fe3O4 nanoparticles respectively or simultaneously.In chapter 5, we described general method to produce functional (or multifunctional) nanoparticle/silica microsphere assemblies. Polyglycidyl methacrylate shells grafted on the surface of silica microspheres through surface-initiated Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization technique are used as supports to assemble various types of nanoparticles involving aqueous CdTe nanocrystals, gold nanoparticles and hydrophobic Fe3O4 nanoparticles respectively or simultaneously. The properties of the assembled nanoparticles are well retained in the nanocomposite assemblies, which is tunable according with the amount in large scale.