Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, Lensfield Road, Cambridge CB2 1EW, United Kingdom.
ACS Nano. 2022 May 24;16(5):7373-7379. doi: 10.1021/acsnano.1c09198. Epub 2022 Apr 27.
To manipulate the light-matter interaction effectively, we often rely on high refractive index inorganic nanoparticles. Such materials are contained essentially in everything that looks colorful or white: from paints to coatings but also in processed food, toothpaste, and cosmetic products. As these nanoparticles can accumulate in the human body and environment, there is a strong need to replace them with more biocompatible counterparts. In this work, we introduce various types of cellulose-based microparticles (CMPs) of four sizes with optimized dimensions for efficient light scattering that can replace traditional inorganic particles. We demonstrate that the produced materials can be exploited as highly efficient scattering enhancers, with designed optical performance. Finally, exploiting these cellulose colloids, we fabricated scattering materials and high transmittance/haze films with record performances with respect to the state-of-the-art values. The renewable and biocompatible nature of our systems, combined with their excellent optical properties, allows for the use of our cellulose-based particles in paints, LEDs, and solar cell devices and especially in applications where the biocompatibility of the component is essential, such as in food and pharmaceutical coatings.
为了有效地操控光物质相互作用，我们通常依赖于高折射率的无机纳米粒子。这些材料本质上包含在一切看起来色彩鲜艳或白色的东西中：从油漆、涂料到加工食品、牙膏和化妆品。由于这些纳米粒子可以在人体内和环境中积累，因此强烈需要用更具生物相容性的替代品来替代它们。在这项工作中，我们引入了四种尺寸的基于纤维素的微粒子（CMP），这些微粒子的尺寸经过优化，可以高效地散射光，从而替代传统的无机颗粒。我们证明，所制备的材料可以用作高效的散射增强剂，具有设计的光学性能。最后，利用这些纤维素胶体，我们制造了散射材料和高透光率/高雾度薄膜，其性能创下了相对于现有技术值的记录。我们的系统具有可再生和生物相容性的特点，再加上其出色的光学性能，使得我们的基于纤维素的粒子可以用于油漆、LED 和太阳能电池器件，特别是在组件的生物相容性至关重要的应用中，例如在食品和药物涂层中。
