Method for suppressing superheating behavior during microwave assisted nanoparticle formation by ethylene glycol addition

Abstract

© 2018 Elsevier B.V. Microwave-assisted nanoparticle formation has been subject of interest of many researchers in producing nano-structured crystals and in this regard, previous studies have indicated that higher microwave power generally is desirable to have faster nanoparticle growth. Nevertheless, it has been acknowledged that high irradiation power especially at longer duration may cause superheating which degrades the product quality. Consequently, efforts should be dedicated in finding trade-off between preventing superheating and also ensuring both rapid particle growth and fine nanoparticle formation. This study was, therefore, carried out to propose and test a synergistic effect of microwave and addition of anti-solvent (ethylene glycol) in addressing the issues above. From the results and findings and comparisons with our previous studies on microwave assisted nanoparticle formation, adding anti-solvent is able to suppress superheating and swift bubble growth and consequently stable nanoparticle formation could be achieved. Moreover, it is also evident that a combined effect of microwave and anti-solvent results in not only stable but also finer nanoparticle formation. It is envisaged that the outcomes from this work may further contribute to fundamental aspects microwave assisted nanoparticle synthesis and its commercial applications.