Chitin nanocrystal-xyloglucan multilayer thin films.

For the first time, the adsorption of xyloglucan (XG) on chitin nanocrystals (ChiNC) surface was proved using quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation (QCM-D) and by successfully building up spin-coated assisted layer-by-layer (LbL) structures on solid substrates. Several parameters in the adsorption process, such as ChiNC concentrations (0.5-3.0 g L(-1)), number of layers, or the outmost layer material (ChiNC or XG), were investigated to better understand the fabrication process of multilayer films. The thickness of the homogeneous film increased linearly with the number of bilayers, with an average thickness per bilayer of 12.3 nm. Additionally surface morphology was studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM), which revealed an almost completely covered surface after the adsorption of ChiNC. The final structures were found to have semireflective properties capable of being tuned by adjusting the ChiNC dispersion parameters.