A novel preparation of surface-modified paramagnetic magnetite/polystyrene nanocomposite microspheres by radiation-induced miniemulsion polymerization

A novel and facile approach to the preparation of paramagnetic magnetite/polystyrene nanocomposite microspheres by 60Co gamma-ray radiation-induced miniemulsion polymerization is reported. First, we modified the magnetite nanoparticles (MPs) with a Y-shaped surfactant: 12-hexanoyloxy-9-octadecenoic acid (HOA). Nanocomposite microspheres consisting of polystyrene-iron oxide nanoparticles then were prepared by the radiation-induced miniemulsion polymerization of styrene in the presence of HOA-modified MPs using HOA as stabilizer. The final products were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The effects of the dose rate, the amounts of added hexadecane (HD) and MPs, and the morphology of the final products were studied. We have also studied the polymerization kinetics to prove the miniemulsion polymerization mechanism of the nanocomposite microspheres.