Polyamide-amine-epichlorohydrin (PAE) induced TiO nanoparticles assembly in cellulose network.

Hypothesis: TiO-NPs-Cellulose composites functionality depends on the retention and dispersion of NPs in the composites. SAXS and SEM can be combined to reveal the effect PAE has on the NPs aggregation, retention and interaction mechanisms in the composites.

Experiments: TiO-NPs-Cellulose sheets were made by first preparing PAE-cellulose suspensions of different PAE dosages (10 and 50 mg of PAE/g fibres).

Cationic polyacrylamide induced nanoparticles assembly in a cellulose nanofiber network.

Polyacrylamides of different molecular weight, charges and dosages allow to control the retention and distribution of nanoparticles (NPs) in composites, and optimise composite properties and functionality. Our aim is to evaluate the effect of high molecular weight (13 MDa) cationic polyacrylamide (CPAM) charge and dosage on SiO (74 nm) NP's assembly in cellulose nanofibers composites. Engineered cellulose/SiO composites were investigated by SEM, SAXS and DLS.

Effect of nanoparticles size and polyelectrolyte on nanoparticles aggregation in a cellulose fibrous matrix.

Controlling nanoparticles (NPs) aggregation in cellulose/NPs composites allows to optimise NPs driven properties and their applications. Polyelectrolytes are used to control NPs aggregation and their retention within the fibrous matrix. Here, we aim at evaluating how a polyelectrolyte (Cationic Polyacrylamide; CPAM, molecular weight: 13MDa, charge: 50%, Radius of gyration: 30-36nm) adsorbs and re-conforms onto the surface of silica(SiO) NPs differing in diameter (8, 22 and 74nm) and to investigate the respective NPs aggregation in cellulose matrices.