Part 2. NANOCHEMISTRY - an introduction and potential applications
(more details on some of them on separate pages)
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Brown's Chemistry Revision Notes NANOCHEMISTRY
Nanoscience - Nanotechnology - Nanostructures
All my
GCSE Chemistry Revision
notes
Index of nanoscience revision notes
Index of smart materials pages
General survey of materials - natural & synthetic, properties, uses
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Alphabetical keyword index for
the nanoscience pages : Index of nanoscience pages
: boron nitride *
Buckminsterfullerenes-bucky balls *
carbon nanotubes * fat nanoparticles
* fluorographene *
fullerenes *
graphene * health and
safety issues
* liposomes *
nanochemistry *
nanomaterials *
nanoparticles *
nanoscale * nanoscience *
nanosize-nanosized-particles *
nanostructures
* nanotechnology *
nanotubes *
problems in nanomaterial use *
silver nanoparticles *
safety issues * sunscreens-sunblockers *
titanium dioxide
basic school
chemistry revision notes science GCSE chemistry, IGCSE chemistry, O level
& ~US grades 8, 9 and 10 school science courses or equivalent for ~14-16 year old
science students for national examinations in chemistry for topics including
nanoparticles nanoscience nanochemistry uses of nanomaterials
Part 2. NANOCHEMISTRY
- Introduction
-
What is NANOCHEMISTRY?
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Nanochemistry is a branch
of nanoscience, deals with
the chemical applications of nanomaterials in nanotechnology.
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Nanochemistry involves
the study of the synthesis and characterisation of materials of nanoscale
size.
-
Nanochemistry is a relatively
new branch of chemistry concerned with the unique properties associated
with assemblies of atoms or molecules of nanoscale (~1-100 nm), so the size
of nanoparticles lies somewhere between individual atoms or molecules (the
'building blocks') and larger assemblies of bulk material which we are more
familiar with.
-
There are physical and chemical techniques in
manipulating atoms to form molecules and nanoscale assemblies.
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Physical techniques allow atoms
to be manipulated and positioned to specific requirements for a prescribed
use.
-
Traditional
chemical techniques arrange atoms in molecules using well characterised chemical reactions.
-
Nanochemistry is the science of tools, technologies, and methodologies for
novel chemical synthesis e.g. employing synthetic chemistry
to make nanoscale building blocks of desired (prescribed) shape, size, composition and
surface structure and possibly the potential to control
the actual self-assembly of these building blocks to various desirable size.
-
At this extremely small scale
level, quantum effects can be significant, fascinating and potentially
scientifically very rewarding innovative ways of carrying out chemical
reactions are possible.
-
The small size of nanoparticles
gives these particles 'unusual' structural and optical properties with
applications in catalysis, electrooptical devices etc.
-
As well as the huge numbers of
man-made nanoparticles structures being synthesised, there are naturally occurring
nanoparticle assemblies e.g. phospholipid vesicles, polypeptide micelle of
the iron storage protein, ferritin.
-
Nanoparticles are VERY tiny
aggregations of atoms BUT bigger than most molecules.
-
There is no strict dividing line
between nanoparticles and 'ordinary bulk' particles of a material such as
baking powder or grains of sand, BUT particle size matters! ...
-
... BECAUSE nanoparticles can display
properties significantly different from the bulk material and these
properties can be exploited for many different uses. If you compare the size of
nanoparticles to that of conventional industrially produced materials you
find they have novel uses such as sunscreens and many present future
applications e.g.
-
Nanoparticles have a high
surface to volume ratio which has a dramatic effect on their properties
compared to non-nanoscale more bulky forms of the same material.
-
Nanoparticles have a very high surface
to volume ratio and this gives them special properties different from the bulk
material e.g.
-
This difference in surface area /
volume ratio for the particles of the material give nanoparticles
extra chemical reactivity compared to the bulk material,
-
less of a
material like a catalyst is needed in a chemical process, so catalysts based
on nanoparticles are more efficient than those based on bulk material
catalysts.
-
-
Pieces of gold are, fairly
obviously, gold-coloured, but gold nanoparticles are deep red or even black
when mixed with water. use?
-
Titanium dioxide is a white
solid used in house paint where plainly it reflects visible light. However,
titanium dioxide nanoparticles are so small that they do not reflect visible
light, so they cannot be seen and are used in sunblock creams because they
block harmful ultraviolet light from the Sun without appearing white on the
skin (as in TiO2 in paint).
-
Silver foil shows virtually no
reaction with dilute hydrochloric acid but nanoparticles of silver rapidly
react with hydrochloric acid because of the very large surface are to volume
ration (think of limestone lumps and very fine powder illustrates this effect
at the much larger non-nanoparticle level.
-
A summary of some uses of nanoparticles
-
Some are described in more detail on
other pages, see index at the end and links here too.
-
New applications for nanoparticle
materials are an important area of research.
-
Nanoparticles have many applications in
medicine for controlled drug delivery via
fullerenes - an example of nanomedicine application.
-
Nanotechnology is being applied to the
production of synthetic skin and implant surgery.
-
Nanomaterials that conduct electricity are being used in
electronics as minute conductors to produce circuits for microchips.
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Materials in cosmetics, deodorants and
sun creams may be of nanoparticle size
and they are used to improve moisturisers without making them too oily.
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Nanoscale materials are being developed
as new catalysts for fuel cells.
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Nanoparticle substances are incorporated
in fabrics to prevent the growth of bacteria.
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Fullerene nanoparticles can act as
molecular sieves, these allow small molecules to pass through, but
larger molecules are trapped on one side.
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Nanotubes (more details of specific
examples on other pages), one of the most widespread studied and used
nanomaterials, consist of tiny cylinders of
carbon (and other materials like
boron nitride), no wider than a strand of DNA with a wide range of properties
of great use to materials scientists.
-
Nanotubes can be stronger than steel
with only 1/6th the weight. Some nanotubes are excellent
insulators, semiconductors or conduct electricity as well as
copper!
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Incredibly, there are lots of varieties of nanotubes,
even for the same element or compound,
differing in size and atomic arrangement, which can have very different properties!
-
Therefore a wide range of nanomaterials are being developed for an even
wider range of applications and technological uses. See also
carbon and
boron nitride
to illustrate this point.
Applications of Nanoscience - with an
emphasis on NANOCHEMISTRY
Detailed examples of uses of
nanomaterials in
CHEMISTRY are discussed on separate pages
(see index below)
-
We are talking about the
manufacture of new catalysts, coatings, computer components, highly
selective sensors, lighter strong materials etc.
-
The large surface to volume
ratio will allow the development of new industrial catalysts.
-
Nanomaterials can be used to
make sensors that detect specific molecules.
-
Nanotubes can be fabricated into
strong and light materials, sometimes as composites with other
non-nanomaterials.
-
-
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The increased reactivity
and small size of nanoparticles compared to larger ones are two important
factors which frequently crop up when studying the function of
nanomaterials.
-
Nanoparticles have a high
surface area to volume ratio, this increases their rate of chemical
reaction (greater reactivity) and this also enhances their catalytic effect.
-
Nanomaterials can even be used
for such mundane-unexciting applications as in self-cleaning ovens and self-cleaning windows!,
but not mundane to domestic work in the home, but will it put window
cleaners out of business, I doubt it!
-
The work on
nanochemistry can include colloid chemistry.
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WHERE NEXT?
NANOSCIENCE - NANOCHEMISTRY INDEX
Part 1.
Introduction to nanoscience,
nanoparticles, commonly used terms explained
Part 2. Nanochemistry - introduction,
uses & potential
applications described
Part 3.
Uses of Nanoparticles of titanium(IV) oxide (e.g. sun
cream), fat (e.g. cosmetics), silver (e.g. medical applications)
Part 4.
From fullerenes & bucky balls to carbon nanotubes -
structure, properties, uses
Part 5.
Graphene,
graphene oxide and
fluorographene - structure, properties, uses
Part 6.
Cubic and hexagonal boron nitride BN
Part 7.
Problems, issues and
implications associated with
using nanomaterials
see also INDEX
of
Smart materials pages
and
A general survey of materials - natural & synthetic,
their properties & uses
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