François Rossi

Direct quantification of nanoparticle surface hydrophobicity

Hydrophobicity is an important parameter for the risk assessment of chemicals, but standardised quantitative methods for the determination of hydrophobicity cannot be applied to nanomaterials. Here we describe a method for the direct quantification of the surface energy and hydrophobicity of nanomaterials. The quantification is obtained by comparing the nanomaterial binding affinity to two or more engineered collectors, i.e. surfaces with tuned hydrophobicity. In order to validate the concept, the method is applied to a set of nanoparticles with varying degrees of hydrophobicity. The technique described represents an alternative to the use of other methods such as hydrophobic interaction chromatography or water–octanol partition, which provide only qualitative values of hydrophobicity.The hydrophobicity of nanomaterials can strongly influence their behaviour and particularly their interaction with biological systems, but quantifying this in solution can be difficult. Here the surface hydrophobicity of nanoparticles in solution is quantitatively measured by analysing the kinetics of binding to engineered collectors.

A 2D nanoparticle sorter: towards an on-chip quantification and full characterization of nanoparticles

In the context of the extensive use of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) in consumer products, industrial applications and nanomedicine, there is an important need of new methods for an exhaustive characterization of their physicochemical properties. Among them, surface hydrophobicity is considered as a key factor to be controlled, in particular for nanomedicine applications1,2. The proposed study demonstrates the proof-of-concept of an inexpensive characterization process, enabling the sorting of ENMs according to their hydrophobicity and surface charge, together with the classical characterization of size and shape. The detection platform is based on the use of a surface modified through plasma polymer and layer-by-layer polyelectrolyte deposition in order to generate areas of tuned surface properties to bind ENMs selectively by hydrophobic forces and electrostatic interactions. The key advantages of such a device is the decrease of time and assay costs thanks to the all-in-one characterization process and the multiplexing that could replace the use of different methods and expensive equipment to give equivalent results. In this way, the full characterization of NP could be expanded in all the areas covering NP-related applications.

Modeling of the Equivalent Circuit of Inductively Coupled Plasma Sources

This paper presents a method to determine the equivalent circuit of an Inductively Coupled Plasma source (ICP), in relating impedance measurements to numerical simulation.