Nanoparticle Assembled Hollow Spheres
Tech ID: 10247 / UC Case 2002-069-0
Background
Nanoparticles with very small diameters (<100 nm) can be produced from a variety of compositions, such as metals, metal oxides, metal non-oxides, and polymers. The physical, chemical, and electronic properties of nanoparticles differ from those of bulk materials and molecules, which makes them desirable for preparing macroscopic, functional materials and devices. Directed nanoparticle assembly requires highly specific interactions between nanoparticles and organic molecules to achieve controlled construction of the multidimensional nanostructures. Due to their encapsulation properties, hollow spheres provide an attractive structure for many applications. However, current preparation methods are labor-intensive and require multiple, sequential steps.
Description
Scientists at the University of California have developed a novel approach in which nanoparticles can arrange to form hollow sphere and other complex microstructures using particular block copolypeptides as the structure-directing agent. This improved method eliminates hydrolysis and condensation reactions that occur when producing hollow spheres from tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) while focusing on the directed assembly properties of these block copolypeptides.
Applications
This new UC invention has several applications in "nanocapsule" technology, such as:
- Drug delivery;
- Chemical storage and contaminated waste removal;
- Gene therapy;
- catalysis;
- cosmetics;
- magnetic contrast agents (for use in magnetic resonance imaging) and magnetooptoelectronics.
Advantages
The new UC technology provides the following benefits:
- Simple and easy to prepare ("one-pot synthesis");
- General method to produce organic-inorganic hybrid materials;
- Achieves different structures of hybrid materials that have desirable encapsulation properties;
- Organics from hybrid spheres can be removed easily to produce hollow spheres;
- Operates at low temperatures.
Nanoparticle Self-Assembly of Hierarchically Ordered Microcapsule Structures " R. K. Rana, V. S. Murthy, J. Yu, M. S. Wong, Advanced Materials 2005
Patent Status
| Country | Type | Number | Dated | Case |
| United States Of America | Issued Patent | 7,563,457 | 07/21/2009 | 2002-069 |
Inventors
- Bartl, Michael H.
- Birkedal, Henrik
- Cha, Jennifer N.
- Deming, Timothy J.
- Stucky, Galen D.
- Sumerel, Jan L.
- Wong, Michael S.
Contact
Shaun R. Juncal / juncal@tia.ucsb.edu / tel: View Phone Number. Please reference Tech ID #10247.
ADDITIONAL TECHNOLOGIES BY THESE INVENTORS
- Moisture-Resistant Adhesive Polypeptides
- Initiators For Block-Copolypeptide Synthesis
- Modular Adhesives And Energy-Dissipating Materials
- Synthesis Of Silica And Silicone Polymer Networks Under Benign Conditions
- Inorganic/Block Coploymer-Dye Composites And Dye-Doped Mesoporous Materials For Optical And Sensing Applications
- Tough, Self-Healing Silicone Materials
- Use Of Magnetic Nanoparticles To Remove Dispersed Nanoparticles From Aqueous Solutions
- Thermally Stable Proton-Conductive Membranes for Fuel Cell Applications
- Membranes for Electrochemical Devices and Materials (Fuel cells, Photovoltaic, Batteries)
- Polypeptide Vesicles for Intracellular Drug Delivery
- Hemostatic and Wound Healing Compositions
- High Performance Polymeric Material for Holographic Data Storage
- Novel Current Collector Design for Use in Rechargeable Lithium Metal Batteries
- Low Cost Nanoparticles for Fossil Fuel Exhaust Treatment
- Hydrogen Cyano Fullerene Containing Proton Conducting Membranes
- Hydrophilic Phosphoric Acid Compositions for Proton Conducting Membranes
- Novel Capacitor for Rechargeable Batteries with Longer Lifetimes
- Method of Preparing Silicon and Silicon-Germanium Nanocomposites as Thermoelectric Materials
