Encapsulation of TiO2 nanoparticles with poly(4-vinylpyridine) using surface functionalized thiol-lactam initiated radical polymerization.

Md Rafiqul Islam, Long Giang Bach, Jung Hyun Jeong, Hyun Gyu Kim, Kwon Taek Lim

Index: J. Nanosci. Nanotechnol. 13(5) , 3546-9, (2013)

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Abstract

A nanocomposite of TiO2 nanoparticle with an electroactive poly(4-vinylpyridine) (PVP) was synthesized via a simple surface thiol-lactam initiated radical polymerization upon grafting from protocol. This can be achieved through the primary modification of the TiO2 surface with a silane coupling agent leading to thiol functionalized TiO2 (TiO2-SH). Subsequently, a controlled radical polymerization of 4-vinylpyridine in the presence of TiO2-SH and butyrolactam afforded PVP-g-TiO2 nanocomposites. The grafting of PVP on the surface of TiO2 was confirmed by FT-IR, TGA, XPS, EDX, TEM and SEM analyses. The UV-vis studies of the synthesized PVP-g-TiO2 nanocomposite demonstrated an exceptionally good dispersibility in organic solvents.