UV screening of ferulic acid-zinc basic salt nanohybrid with controlled release rate.

Ferulic acid (FA), an organic UV absorber and free radical scavenger, was intercalated into an inorganic zinc basic salt (ZBS) matrix to prepare a UV screening material. FA molecules were vertically oriented bilayer in the ZBS lattice with an expansion of approximately 22.7 angstroms along the c-axis. The FA-ZBS nanohybrid exhibited a superior UV-A approximately UV-B screening ability and an antioxidant activity that was comparable to that of a pure FA molecule. The in vitro release test showed the biphasic release of the FA molecules from the FA-ZBS nanohybrid that consisted of an initial burst, followed by a slow and sustained release.