Spherical, Dimpled, and Crumpled Hybrid Colloids with Tunable Surface Morphology

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Colloid Science
• Polymer Chemistry

Background:

• Surface morphology significantly influences colloidal suspension properties like wettability and viscoelasticity.
• Current methods for creating rough-surfaced colloids lack tunability in surface properties.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a versatile synthetic approach for producing hybrid colloids with tunable surface morphology.
• To control particle shape (spherical, dimpled, crumpled) and surface roughness.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing dispersion polymerization to synthesize monodisperse linear polystyrene colloids.
• Swelling and cross-linking polystyrene colloids with styrene and 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate (TPM).
• Controlling morphology by adjusting TPM and hydroquinone concentrations during swelling.

Main Results:

• Achieved tunable surface roughness in spherical colloids by varying hydroquinone concentration.
• Synthesized single-dimpled colloids with controllable dimple size at intermediate TPM concentrations.
• Produced crumpled colloids with diverse shapes at high TPM concentrations.
• Demonstrated silica coating of all particle types, creating hybrid colloids or shells with varied surface textures.

Conclusions:

• The developed method offers precise control over hybrid colloid surface morphology.
• Tunable surface morphology enables tailored physical properties for colloidal suspensions.
• The synthesized particles serve as versatile templates for silica coating, yielding diverse silica structures.