Polyelectrolyte Assisted Charge Titration Spectrometry: Applications to Latex and Oxide Nanoparticles
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Polyelectrolyte assisted charge titration spectrometry: applications to latex and oxide nanoparticles F. Mousseau1*, L. Vitorazi1, L. Herrmann1, S. Mornet2 and J.-F. Berret1* 1Matière et Systèmes Complexes, UMR 7057 CNRS Université Denis Diderot Paris-VII, Bâtiment Condorcet, 10 rue Alice Domon et Léonie Duquet, 75205 Paris, France. 2Institut de Chimie de la Matière Condensée de Bordeaux, UPR CNRS 9048, Université Bordeaux 1, 87 Avenue du Docteur A. Schweitzer, Pessac cedex F-33608, France. Abstract: The electrostatic charge density of particles is of paramount importance for the control of the dispersion stability. Conventional methods use potentiometric, conductometric or turbidity titration but require large amount of samples. Here we report a simple and cost-effective method called polyelectrolyte assisted charge titration spectrometry or PACTS. The technique takes advantage of the propensity of oppositely charged polymers and particles to assemble upon mixing, leading to aggregation or phase separation. The mixed dispersions exhibit a maximum in light scattering as a function of the volumetric ratio �, and the peak position �!"# is linked to the particle charge density according to � ~ �!�!"# where �! is the particle diameter. The PACTS is successfully applied to organic latex, aluminum and silicon oxide particles of positive or negative charge using poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride) and poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate). The protocol is also optimized with respect to important parameters such as pH and concentration, and to the polyelectrolyte molecular weight. The advantages of the PACTS technique are that it requires minute amounts of sample and that it is suitable to a broad variety of charged nano-objects. Keywords: charge density – nanoparticles - light scattering – polyelectrolyte complex Corresponding authors: [email protected] [email protected] To appear in Journal of Colloid and Interface Science leading to their condensation and to the formation of the electrical double layer [1]. The I – Introduction counterion condensation occurs for charge Electrostatic Coulomb forces are ubiquitous in density � above a certain threshold [4]: soft condensed matter [1, 2]. Interaction pair potentials created by elementary charges of the 2 same sign at interfaces or along macromolecules � > (1) ��ℓ! are long-range and repulsive. These interactions depend on physico-chemical parameters, such as where � is the diameter of the colloid and ℓ! is the dielectric constant of the continuous phase, the Bjerrum length (0.7 nm in water). As a result, the solute concentration, the pH, the ionic particles in solution satisfying Eq. 1 behave as if strength and the temperature. Electrostatic they would have an effective charge �!"" forces between like-charged systems are different from its structural charge � [4, 5]. especially relevant to insure repulsion between !"# The counterion condensation for colloids bears colloidal objects. At low ionic strength, strong similarities with that derived for polymers electrostatic repulsions are for instance sufficient and known as the Oosawa-Manning to induce long-range ordering and colloidal condensation [6]. Following Belloni [4] the crystal phases [3]. In aqueous dispersions, the effective charge can be approximated by the ionizable groups at the colloid surface exert expression: Coulombic forces towards the counterions, 2� �!"" = (2) ℓ! 1 techniques were proposed to measure the For a particle of charge density � = +1� nm-2 and surface charge of particles in the nanometer a diameter of 10 nm, the effective charge �!"" = range [41, 42]. +28� represents around 10% of the total The technique examined here borrows its ionizable groups (�!"# = +314�). As the principle from methods developed for enzymatic condensed counterions are firmly attached to the activity measurements [43] and from turbidity surface and move with the colloid during titration [44, 45]. Earlier reports suggest that the diffusion, experiments such as electrophoretic maximum of absorbance or turbidity associated mobility measurements [7-12] or small-angle with the precipitation is related to the end-point scattering experiments in the concentrated reaction, and allows an estimation of the charge regime [13-15] enable access to the effective density of the titrated colloids. The method charge only. applied here differs from turbidity titration in two aspects: i) light scattering is preferred to UV- Potentiometric, turbidity or colloid titration spectrometry and ii) the mixed polymer and techniques, as well as conductometry are particle dispersions are prepared by direct mixing commonly used to determine the structural instead of step-wise addition. With newly charges of colloids. Potentiometric or acid-base developed photon counters, light scattering is a titration coupled with conductometry was highly sensitive technique, which can detect successfully applied to microgels [16], polymer colloidal diffusion down to extremely low micelles [17] and metal oxide nanoparticles [18- concentration. During the last decade, light 21]. However the technique requires large scattering has been applied to investigate the sample quantity, which depending on the particle complexation of oppositely charged species, synthesis is not always possible. To determine including surfactant, polymers, phospholipids the charge density of iron oxide particles for and proteins [12, 46-53]. In most studies instance, Lucas et al. used potentio- however, emphasis was put on the structures conductometric titration with dispersions that formed and not on the reaction containing 5-10 g of iron oxide dry matter [18]. stoichiometry [54]. Here we develop a simple Colloid titration is another method that was protocol based on the use of light scattering and introduced by Terayama some 50 years ago [22]. on the complexation property of particles with This technique was applied to titrate ion- oppositely charged polymers. The technique is containing polymers in aqueous solutions. Colloid assessed on different types of organic and titration is based on the reaction between inorganic nanoparticles in the 50 nm range, oppositely charged polyelectrolytes in presence either positive or negative and it is shown that of a small amount of dye molecules that serves the structural charge and charge density can be as an indicator of the endpoint reaction between determined with minute amount of sample. The the two polymers [23, 24]. technique was dubbed Polyelectrolyte Assisted Initially developed to study protein complexes, Charge Titration Spectrometry subsequently isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) has gained abbreviated as PACTS. interest in the field of physical chemistry. ITC was also used to survey the condensation of DNA with multivalent counterions [25] and with oligo- II – Materials and Methods and polycations [26-28] and more recently the II.1 - Nanoparticles complexation between polymers, proteins or Latex particles functionalized with carboxylate or surfactants. Despite a large number of studies amidine surface groups were acquired from [29-39] the interpretation of the thermograms Molecular Probes (concentration 40 g L-1). The remains a challenge, as the heat exchanges dispersion pH was adjusted at pH9.7 and pH6 by during titration exhibit rich and numerous addition of sodium hydroxide and hydrochloric features not always accounted for by existing acid, respectively. The particles were models [33, 40]. More recently, ultrafast laser characterized by light scattering and transmission spectroscopy coupled to the generation of the electron microscopy, yielding � = 39 nm and 56 second harmonics or resistive pulse sensing ! nm and �! = 30 and 34 nm. Negative silica 2 particles (CLX®, Sigma Aldrich) were diluted from hydrochloric acid. Aluminum oxide nanoparticle 450 to 50 g L-1 by DI-water. Particles were powder (Disperal®, SASOL) was dissolved in a dialyzed for two days against DI-water at pH 9. nitric acid solution (0.4 wt. % in deionized water) -1 Positive silica particles (�! = 60 nm) were at the concentration of 10 g L and sonicated for synthetized using the Stöber synthesis route [55- one hour. For the PACTS experiments, the 57]. Silica seeds were first prepared and grown to dispersions were further diluted to 0.1 g L-1 and increase the particle size. Functionalization by the dispersion pH was adjusted to pH 4 with amine groups was then performed, resulting in a sodium hydroxide. In this pH condition, the positively charged coating [56]. Aminated silica nanoalumina are positively charged (�! = 64 nm) synthesized at 40 g L-1 were diluted with DI-water [58]. and the pH was adjusted to pH 5 with Figure 1: Transmission electronic microscopy images of latex (a,c), silica (b,d) and alumina (e) particles used in this study. Table I: Nanoparticles studied in the present work. Particle characteristics are the mass density (�), the pH at which the experiments are done, the hydrodynamic diameter (�!), the geometric diameter (�!) and the dispersity � obtained from transmission electron microscopy. Fig. 1 displays images of the particles obtained by found slightly higher than the geometric transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Except diameters �! found by TEM. With light for Al2O3 which have the form of irregular scattering, the largest particles contribute platelets of average dimensions 40 nm long and predominantly to the scattering intensity and 10 nm thick, all other particles are spherical. In determine the value for the