Block copolymers for designing nanostructured porous coatings

• Roberto Nisticò

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2332–2344, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.218

• varying the block copolymer parameters (mostly, molecular weight, and the different blocks volume fraction) and the formulation (i.e., solvent(s) volume), it is possible to modulate the surface layer organization at the level of a few tens of nanometers. The following paragraphs describe how well-ordered

• thermodynamically stable structures on the nanometer length scale [44]. However, microphase separation can also be influenced by the presence of a more complex formulation due to the addition of a lower molecular weight component (such as additives and homopolymers) as well as a block-selective solvent [43][45

• orientation or act as a sacrificial component [64][93]. The inclusion of a homopolymer in the formulation is also a possible route to introduce particular effects on domain orientation and stability. As reported by Zhu et al. [93], PS-b-PEO BCs can be blended with PS homopolymers of different molecular

Performance analysis of rigorous coupled-wave analysis and its integration in a coupled modeling approach for optical simulation of complete heterojunction silicon solar cells

• Ziga Lokar,
• Benjamin Lipovsek,
• Marko Topic and
• Janez Krc

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2315–2329, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.216

• our previous work presented in [20] and to other coupling approaches such as the OPTOS matrix formulation [21], our CMA was used for the simulation of the solar cell structure including a double (nano + micro) texture. Modeling Rigorous coupled-wave analysis method RCWA, also called the Fourier modal

Nanocomposites comprised of homogeneously dispersed magnetic iron-oxide nanoparticles and poly(methyl methacrylate)

• Sašo Gyergyek,
• David Pahovnik,
• Ema Žagar,
• Alenka Mertelj,
• Rok Kostanjšek,
• Miloš Beković,
• Marko Jagodič,
• Heinrich Hofmann and
• Darko Makovec

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1613–1622, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.153

• deliver local magnetic hyperthermia [13]. One of the key properties of the formulation was the colloidal stability of the magnetic nanoparticles in the polymer solution. Acrylic-based cements are extensively used for the fixation of implantable prosthesis or in vertebroplasty, i.e., the procedure to fix

Excitation of nonradiating magnetic anapole states with azimuthally polarized vector beams

• Aristeidis G. Lamprianidis and
• Andrey E. Miroshnichenko

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1478–1490, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.139

• Helmholtz equation of free space. This second expansion, as we will see in the next section, is of crucial importance in studying the far-field scattering properties of particles illuminated by such an excitation field. T-Matrix Method for Far-Field Scattering Calculations The T-matrix formulation is a

• hypothesis [40][41]. The spherical amplitudes of the scattered field will be given in the T-matrix formulation by the following expression: or in matrix formulation: B = T· A. Not only the spherical amplitudes of the input vector, but also the elements of the T-matrix, as well as the values of the output

Semi-automatic spray pyrolysis deposition of thin, transparent, titania films as blocking layers for dye-sensitized and perovskite solar cells

• Hana Krýsová,
• Josef Krýsa and
• Ladislav Kavan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1135–1145, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.105

• outperformed the layers made by spin coating [9]. Matteocci et al. [13] used a modified precursor solution which was obtained by addition of acetylacetone to the conventional formulation (i.e., titanium diisopropoxide bis(acetylacetonate)) in ethanol. They fabricated compact TiO2 blocking layers (via SPD) for

Cyclodextrin-assisted synthesis of tailored mesoporous silica nanoparticles

• Fuat Topuz and
• Tamer Uyar

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 693–703, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.64

• of pristine CD (β-CD) or hydroxypropyl-functionalized CDs (HP-γ-CD and HP-β-CD). Depending on the formulation conditions, differently shaped MSNs, such as bean-like, spherical, ellipsoid, aggregate and faceted were generated. The morphology and size of MSNs varied with the CD-type used. Generally

• by the CTAC-templated, NaOH-catalyzed silica condensation in the presence of CD moieties (pristine or HP-functionalized ones). By varying the formulation parameters (CD content and type), nanoparticles were produced in various shapes (aggregates, spherical, bean-like and faceted). TGA, 13C MAS NMR

• and FTIR analyses confirmed a physical adsorption of CD molecules. The surface area of MSNs varied depending on the formulation parameters. The particle shape was influenced by the concentrations of both CD and CTAC and as well as the ratio between them. The variation of the CD type during the

Optimisation of purification techniques for the preparation of large-volume aqueous solar nanoparticle inks for organic photovoltaics

• Furqan Almyahi,
• Thomas R. Andersen,
• Nathan A. Cooling,
• Natalie P. Holmes,
• Matthew J. Griffith,
• Krishna Feron,
• Xiaojing Zhou,
• Warwick J. Belcher and
• Paul C. Dastoor

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 649–659, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.60

• . Layer thicknesses were measured by a KLA–Tencor Alpha step 500 surface profilometer. Preparation of aqueous solar nanoparticle inks In accordance with the modified mini-emulsion process [10][11], the formulation of ASNP inks based on P3HT:ICxA (1:0.8) in large batch (100 mL) comprised several procedural

Design of polar self-assembling lactic acid derivatives possessing submicrometre helical pitch

• Alexej Bubnov,
• Cyril Vacek,
• Michał Czerwiński,
• Terezia Vojtylová,
• Wiktor Piecek and
• Věra Hamplová

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 333–341, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.33

• attached to longer alkyl chains [20][37]. The electro-optic parameters of the studied compounds are temperature dependent, namely, the spontaneous polarisation and tilt angle, which are extremely important for practical applications [5][44]. However, these parameters can be stabilised by formulation of the

The role of ligands in coinage-metal nanoparticles for electronics

• Ioannis Kanelidis and
• Tobias Kraus

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2625–2639, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.263

• modified nanoparticles exhibited resistivities that were six and ten orders of magnitude below that of films prepared from the original oleylamine-stabilized Au NPs [102]. The commonly used CTAB forms insulating layers, too, and has limited solubility even in water that makes ink formulation challenging

• spherical and rod-like gold nanoparticles dispersed in a formulation with PEDOT:PSS. Composite films with nanorod volume fractions between 10 and 70% were deposited onto quartz substrates; the film with the highest metal content reached a conductivity of 2000 S/cm without further processing, approximately

• their high conductivity and relative stability. Gold is commonly applied if improved stability or biocompatibility is required. The synthesis and formulation of metal nanoparticles as inks requires appropriate ligands. Current literature provides many examples of ligands that provide various functions

Intercalation of Si between MoS₂ layers

• Rik van Bremen,
• Qirong Yao,
• Soumya Banerjee,
• Deniz Cakir,
• Nuri Oncel and
• Harold J. W. Zandvliet

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1952–1960, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.196

• DFT as implemented in the Vienna ab initio simulation package (VASP) [37]. The exchange–correlation interactions are treated using the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) within the Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof (PBE) formulation [38]. The plane waves are expanded with an energy cut of 400 eV. Since the

Enhancement of mechanical and electrical properties of continuous-fiber-reinforced epoxy composites with stacked graphene

• Naum Naveh,
• Olga Shepelev and
• Samuel Kenig

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1909–1918, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.191

• formulation (by weight) was as follows: epoxy: 100 parts; SAA: 1 pph; expanded graphite (EG): 2.5 pph (or 2.1 wt %); hardener TETA: 14.1 pph. Fabrication of composite materials Composite laminates were prepared using carbon fiber (CF) fabric, Kevlar fabric alone or a combination of CF/Kevlar combinations, and

Development of polycationic amphiphilic cyclodextrin nanoparticles for anticancer drug delivery

• Gamze Varan,
• Juan M. Benito,
• Carmen Ortiz Mellet and
• Erem Bilensoy

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1457–1468, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.145

• -formulation studies were used as a basis for selecting the suitable organic solvent and surfactant concentration for the novel polycationic cyclodextrin nanoparticles. The nanoparticles were then extensively characterized with particle size distribution, polydispersity index, zeta potential, drug loading

• difficulties related to its intravenous administration to patients. The most important of these challenges is the very low solubility of PCX in water (0.3 µg/mL) [4]. To overcome poor solubility of PCX in water, the current commercial injectable formulation consists of a 1:1 mixture of anhydrous ethanol and

• of chemotherapy with PCX. A promising step was taken with the FDA approval of albumin nanoparticle bound PCX (Abraxane®) in 2005 for breast cancer treatment with a significantly lower dose [8]. This was considered a breakthrough in PCX formulation development as it avoided the use of solubilizers

Cationic PEGylated polycaprolactone nanoparticles carrying post-operation docetaxel for glioma treatment

• Cem Varan and
• Erem Bilensoy

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1446–1456, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.144

• treat brain tumors and prevent tumor recurrence. The aim of this study was to develop core–shell polymeric nanoparticles with positive charge by employing a chitosan coating. Additionally, an implantable formulation for the chemotherapeutic nanoparticles was developed as a bioadhesive film to be applied

• cells in vitro due to disruption of microtubule function. However, they are known to have severe solubility problems in aqueous media, therefore co-solvents or excipients are used to improve their solubility to facilitate injectable formulation development. Unfortunately, these solubilizing agents may

• often cause serious side effects. Thus, the necessity of a safe and effective formulation and drug delivery approach emerges for these potent anticancer drugs from the taxane family [10][11][12][13]. Successful treatment of brain cancer is dependent on the efficient and safe delivery of chemotherapeutic

Deposition of exchange-coupled dinickel complexes on gold substrates utilizing ambidentate mercapto-carboxylato ligands

• Martin Börner,
• Laura Blömer,
• Marcus Kischel,
• Peter Richter,
• Georgeta Salvan,
• Dietrich R. T. Zahn,
• Pablo F. Siles,
• Maria E. N. Fuentes,
• Carlos C. B. Bufon,
• Daniel Grimm,
• Oliver G. Schmidt,
• Daniel Breite,
• Bernd Abel and
• Berthold Kersting

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1375–1387, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.139

• (L’)]+ cations (Table 1) were consistent with the formulation as mixed ligand [Ni2L(L’)](ClO4) complexes. It has already been demonstrated that the [Ni2L]2+ dication has a higher affinity for carboxylate ions than for thiophenolate groups, and that the former, when attached to [Ni2L]2+, invariably

Miniemulsion copolymerization of (meth)acrylates in the presence of functionalized multiwalled carbon nanotubes for reinforced coating applications

• Bertha T. Pérez-Martínez,
• Lorena Farías-Cepeda,
• Víctor M. Ovando-Medina,
• José M. Asua,
• Lucero Rosales-Marines and
• Radmila Tomovska

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1328–1337, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.134

• period and does not require massive diffusion of the components of the formulation through the aqueous phase. Ham et al. [32][33] used a so-called miniemulsion process in an attempt to cover SWCNTs with polystyrene nanoparticles, where n-pentanol was used as a hydrophobe to minimize Ostwald ripening

Study of the correlation between sensing performance and surface morphology of inkjet-printed aqueous graphene-based chemiresistors for NO₂ detection

• F. Villani,
• C. Schiattarella,
• T. Polichetti,
• R. Di Capua,
• F. Loffredo,
• B. Alfano,
• M. L. Miglietta,
• E. Massera,
• L. Verdoliva and
• G. Di Francia

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1023–1031, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.103

• enriched up to the final concentration of 0.2 mg/mL (see the procedure described in the Experimental section). The physico-chemical properties of this final formulation have been investigated in order to establish if it satisfies the physical and rheological requirements of the fluid flow in the inkjet

Near-field surface plasmon field enhancement induced by rippled surfaces

• Mario D’Acunto,
• Francesco Fuso,
• Ruggero Micheletto,
• Makoto Naruse,
• Francesco Tantussi and
• Maria Allegrini

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 956–967, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.97

• formulation of SIEs, resulting from application of Green’s theorem on the scattering volumes directly to the exact electromagnetic equations [37]. The latter is the approach followed to derive the numerical results presented in this paper [38]. The basic advantage of an approach based on the dyadic Green’s

• rippled surfaces. The ability to reproduce the rippled surfaces led us to opt for a surface integral equations formulation resulting from the application of Green’s theorem on the scattering surfaces directly to the exact electromagnetic wave expression, and hence, the ability to evaluate the

The cleaner, the greener? Product sustainability assessment of the biomimetic façade paint Lotusan^® in comparison to the conventional façade paint Jumbosil^®

• Florian Antony,
• Rainer Grießhammer,
• Thomas Speck and
• Olga Speck

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 2100–2115, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.200

• a large number of façade paints is available on the market, Kougoulis et al. refer to about 20,000 products [30], the decision whether Lotusan® should be compared to a generic paint formulation, typical for a hydrophobic façade paint available on the market, or to a real product, as a reference for

• typical façade paints available on the market had to be made. Suggestions made by Kougoulis et al. [30], may serve as a basis for a generic formulation, but the scoping phase revealed that considerations on an unknown formulation allow only rough approximations resulting in a serious increase of

• 1.5–1.6 g/mL and is, according to the technical data sheet, suitable for slightly filling, opaque exterior paintings on organic and mineral substrates. Jumbosil® is water-repellent and permeable to carbon dioxide and water vapour. Comparing the material input for the formulation of Lotusan® and

A novel electrochemical nanobiosensor for the ultrasensitive and specific detection of femtomolar-level gastric cancer biomarker miRNA-106a

• Maryam Daneshpour,
• Kobra Omidfar and
• Hossein Ghanbarian

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 2023–2036, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.193

• interactions in the product formulation especially during covering the magnetic core with TMC polymer. Preparation of gold–magnetic nanoprobes The biotin-labeled probe P1 was attached onto the gold–magnetic NPs via a three step process: (1) functionalization of gold–magnetic NPs; (2) coating the functionalized

Chitosan-based nanoparticles for improved anticancer efficacy and bioavailability of mifepristone

• Huijuan Zhang,
• Fuqiang Wu,
• Yazhen Li,
• Xiping Yang,
• Jiamei Huang,
• Tingting Lv,
• Yingying Zhang,
• Jianzhong Chen,
• Haijun Chen,
• Yu Gao,
• Guannan Liu and
• Lee Jia

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1861–1870, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.178

• due to P–O stretching vibration. The MCNs formulation showed the characteristic absorption peaks of both MIF and CNs, which proved that MIF was successfully wrapped in Cs nanoparticles. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis The XRD patterns were studied to observe the change in crystallinity of the MIF in

• area produced by the nanoparticles and the bioadhesive properties of Cs allow more of the drug to interact with the gastrointestinal tract [38][39]. These pharmacokinetic data clearly evidence the ability of CNs to enhance the absorption of MIF, which suggests that CNs could be a good formulation for

• 7. When a parameter is changed, the other variables are selected with the optimum conditions. FITR spectra of (A) MIF, (B) blank CNs, and (C) MCNs. The MCNs formulation showed the characteristic absorption peaks of both MIF and CNs. XRD spectra of (A) Cs, (B) blank CNs, (C) MIF, and (D) MCNs. The

Polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene oxide) copolymers as templates for stacked, spherical large-mesopore silica coatings: dependence of silica pore size on the PS/PEO ratio

• Roberto Nisticò,
• Giuliana Magnacca,
• Sushilkumar A. Jadhav and
• Dominique Scalarone

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1454–1460, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.137

• in the synthetic formulation as well as by changing the amphiphile parameters (e.g., number of polar/apolar moieties, functional groups, block length) [20][21][22]. Pluronics, nonionic amphiphiles consisting of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) and poly(propylene oxide) (PPO) triblock copolymers (PEO-b-PPO

• formulation and 23 nm (polynomial curve) and 22 nm (linear curve) for the 93/7 one. Concerning the polynomial curves, the pore size calculation is highlighted in Figure 4C, whereas experimental values calculated for these two formulations are reported in Figure 4D (numerical values collected in Table 2

The self-similarity theory of high pressure torsion

• Yan Beygelzimer,
• Roman Kulagin,
• Laszlo S. Toth and
• Yulia Ivanisenko

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1267–1277, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.117

• , UMR 7239, Metz, F-57045, France 10.3762/bjnano.7.117 Abstract By analyzing the problem of high pressure torsion (HPT) in the rigid plastic formulation, we show that the power hardening law of plastically deformed materials leads to self-similarity of HPT, admitting a simple mathematical description

• micro-level hypothesized in [17]. Model 1 Rigid plastic flow formulation for HPT Figure 1 schematically shows the constrained HPT process [2]. Within the rigid plastic flow framework [18], the definition of the stress–strain state (SSS) during HPT is reduced to solving a set of equations in the

Preparation of alginate–chitosan–cyclodextrin micro- and nanoparticles loaded with anti-tuberculosis compounds

• Albert Ivancic,
• Fliur Macaev,
• Fatma Aksakal,
• Veaceslav Boldescu,
• Serghei Pogrebnoi and
• Gheorghe Duca

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1208–1218, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.112

• , enzymatic degradation of the active compound in the lungs and the high cost of production. These challenges can be addressed with the formulation discussed in this article. Previously, advantages of similar formulations have been discussed by different research groups [7][8][9]. These include: • high

Reasons and remedies for the agglomeration of multilayered graphene and carbon nanotubes in polymers

• Rasheed Atif and
• Fawad Inam

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1174–1196, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.109

Voltammetric determination of polyphenolic content in pomegranate juice using a poly(gallic acid)/multiwalled carbon nanotube modified electrode

• Refat Abdel-Hamid and
• Emad F. Newair

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1104–1112, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.103

• ] were utilized for determination of gallic acid. A sensor based on a carbon paste electrode modified with multiwalled carbon nanotubes was used for voltammetric determination of ellagic acid and gallic acid in an Myrtus communis, Punica granatum and Itriphal formulation [10]. Glassy carbon electrodes