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Preparation of agarose xerogel nanoparticles by solvent evaporation from water nanodroplets

Polymer Journal volume 53, pages 815–821 (2021)Cite this article

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Abstract

We developed a W/O miniemulsion reactor system enabling the preparation of biopolymer nanoparticles and control of their morphologies and inner microstructures. First, the W/O miniemulsion was prepared by suspending water nanodroplets containing agarose in oil. Then, we produced agarose hydrogel nanoparticles (AgarH) by the gelation of agarose in nanodroplets. Next, we prepared agarose xerogel nanoparticles (AgarX) by precisely tuning the water evaporation from AgarH. We controlled the morphologies (solid and hollow) and crystal structure of AgarX by changing the pressure and temperature during water evaporation. In fact, AgarX with a hollow structure was generated through rapid evaporation at a low pressure. AgarH was dissolved in Milli-Q water when the temperature was raised to 90 °C. On the other hand, AgarX remained a solid particle under the same conditions, likely because of its high crystallinity. We expect that this technique can be applied to prepare xerogels of diverse biomass-based polymers for the replacement of synthetic polymers.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Center for Chemical Biology, School of Fundamental Science and Technology, Graduate School of Science and Technology, Keio University, Kohoku-ku, Yokohama, Japan

    Yuuka Fukui, Ryutaro Inamura & Keiji Fujimoto

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  1. Yuuka Fukui
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  2. Ryutaro Inamura
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  3. Keiji Fujimoto
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Correspondence to Keiji Fujimoto.

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Fukui, Y., Inamura, R. & Fujimoto, K. Preparation of agarose xerogel nanoparticles by solvent evaporation from water nanodroplets. Polym J 53, 815–821 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41428-021-00471-5

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