Direct fabrication of hybrid nanofibres composed of SiO2 PMMA nanospheres via electrospinning.
The direct fabrication of hybrid nanofibres composed of poly(methyl methacrylate) grafted SiO2 (SiO2 PMMA) nanospheres via electrospinning was investigated in detail. SiO2 PMMA nanospheres were successfully prepared, with the SiO2 nanospheres synthesized via the Stober method, followed by in situ surface initiated atom transfer radical polymerization of methyl methacrylate (MMA) Electrospinning was carried out with N,N dimethylformamide (DMF) as the solvent to disperse SiO2 PMMA nanospheres. The size of the SiO2 core, the molecular weight of the PMMA shell and the concentration of the SiO2 PMMA/DMF solution all had substantial effects on the morphology and structure of electrospun nanofibres composed of SiO2 PMMA nanospheres. When these determining factors were well tailored, it was found that one dimensional necklace like nanofibres were obtained, with SiO2 PMMA nanospheres aligned one by one along the fibre. The successful fabrication of nanofibres by directly electrospinning the SiO2 PMMA/DMF solution verified that polymer grafted particles possess polymer like characteristics, which endowed them with the ability to be processed into desirable shapes and structures.
Colloids and surfaces. B, Biointerfaces