Synthesis of Magnetic Ferrites Inside Hollow Polyelectrolyte Capsules

Dmitry Shchukin ( dmitry-DOT-shchukin-AT-mpikg-golm-DOT-mpg-DOT-de.gif ), Igor Radchenko, Gleb Sukhorukov
Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, 14424, Potsdam, Germany.

In presented work we describe the selective inorganic synthesis of magneticferrites (CoFe2O4, ZnFe2O4, MnFe2O4) and magnetite (Fe3O4) inside poly(styrene sulfonate) (MW ~ 70000) / poly(allylamine hydrochloride (MW ~ 50000) polyelectrolyte capsules of micron scale. The influence of the initial concentration of the inorganic precursors as well as of the positively charged poly(allylamine hydrochloride) molecules on the precipitation process and final characteristics of the resulted magnetic composites was also investigated. Micron and submicron sized capsules were made by means of layer-by-layer adsorption of oppositely charged polyelectrolytes on the surface of colloidal template particles (weakly cross-linked melamine formaldehyde particles with an average diameter of 5.6 mm) with sequential removal of template core. Synthesized magnetic ferrites and magnetite are placed presumably on the inner side of polyelectrolyte wall. The average diameter of resulted particles is within the range of 10-20 nm. Increasing the initial concentration of the inorganic salts the complete filling of capsule's interior can be observed while the absence of the magnetic precipitates inside the capsule was found at concentrations of the precursors below 5×10-4 M. Capsules bearing magnetic material inside can be easily driven by magnetic field. Besides imparting magnetic properties, developed approach of magnetite synthesis selectively in capsule interior illustrates perspectives to explore these capsules as microreactors for spatially restricted synthesis. The influence of micron-scale volume and capsule composition on carrying out chemical reactions in capsule interior is a subject for further investigations.