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Updated: Jul 14, 2026

Synthesis and Characterization of Supramolecular Colloids
Published on: April 22, 2016
Effect of anionic surfactants on synthesis and self-assembly of silica colloidal nanoparticles
Wei Wang1, Baohua Gu, Liyuan Liang
1Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, P.O. Box 2008, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA. wangw@ornl.gov
Abstract:
Effects of the anionic surfactants, sodium dodecyl sulfate and sodium oleate, on the formation and properties of silica colloidal nanoparticles were investigated. At a concentration of approximately 1 x 10(-3) M, adsorption of anionic surfactants increased particle size, monodispersity, and negative surface charge density of synthesized silica particles. As uniformity of particle size and particle-particle interactions increase, colloidal photonic crystals readily self-assemble without extensive washing of the synthesized silica nanoparticles. The photonic crystals diffract light in the visible region according to Bragg's law. The assembled colloidal particle arrays exhibit a face-centered cubic structure in dried thin films. This study offers a new approach for producing ordered colloidal silica thin films.
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