Besides the presence of any polar functional groups on their surfaces, are there any other factors which help in "water solubility" of nanoparticles, such as carbon dots?
Dear Retuparna:
Termin solubility refers to the formation of a thermodynamically stable solution. The term dispersion refers to the formation of thermodynamically unstable dispersed system. You want get a stable dispersion in water?
Best regards.
Size, charge (causing an enhancement of repulsions, look DLVO theory), tendency to form aggregates (because of attractive interactions). Please look the attached paper just to have an idea, hope this can be helpful for you.
Dear Retuparna:
Termin solubility refers to the formation of a thermodynamically stable solution. The term dispersion refers to the formation of thermodynamically unstable dispersed system. You want get a stable dispersion in water?
Best regards.
Sir, I meant certain nanoparticles like water soluble carbon dots. I want to know what other factors besides the presence of polar functional groups on their surfaces determine their water solubility?
as Yuri mentioned you likely mean dispersibility not solubility. Carbon atoms are not soluble in water. For water dispersibility and stabilization you have to modify the surface to get it hydrated.
Nano-particles are solid substances, which can not be dissolved in the water. You can only disperse the nanoparticles in different base fluids.
Yes Sir, I agree, nanoparticles can only be dispersed in different solvents and cannot be termed as "soluble'. But then why is the term "water soluble" used to describe them, as in the attached reports?
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/anie.200906154/full
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0008622310007141
It is a pity that nowadays you can read this quite regularly. It seems that for what ever reason especially chemists confuse dispersion and solution. Unfortunately, even referees and editors seem to not care about this. Nevertheless there is no reason to contribute to this confusion by neglecting the difference.
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