Engineering hybrid microgels as particulate emulsifiers for reversible Pickering emulsions |
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| Authors: | Hang Jiang Shengwei Zhang Guanqing Sun Yunxing Li Xin Guan Cheng Yang To Ngai |
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| Institution: | The Key Laboratory of Synthetic and Biological Colloids, Ministry of Education & School of Chemical and Material Engineering, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122 P. R. China.; Department of Chemistry, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, N. T., Hong Kong P. R. China, |
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| Abstract: | Thermo-responsive microgels are unique stabilizers for stimuli-sensitive Pickering emulsions that can be switched between the state of emulsification and demulsification by changing the temperature. However, directly temperature-triggering the phase inversion of microgel-stabilized emulsions remains a great challenge. Here, a hybrid poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)-based microgel has now been successfully fabricated with tunable wettability from hydrophilicity to hydrophobicity in a controlled manner. Engineered microgels are synthesized from an inverse emulsion stabilized with hydrophobic silica nanoparticles, and the swelling-induced feature can make the resultant microgel behave like either hydrophilic or hydrophobic colloids. Remarkably, the phase inversion of such microgel-stabilized Pickering emulsions can be in situ regulated by temperature change. Moreover, the engineered microgels were capable of stabilizing water-in-oil Pickering emulsions and encapsulation of enzymes for interfacial bio-catalysis, as well as rapid cargo release triggered by phase inversion.Hybrid poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)-based microgels are templated from inverse Pickering emulsions, and the tunable wettability renders as-prepared emulsions with reversible feature. |
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