H. V. Ehrlich

Synthesizing nanoscale copper sulfide and modifying its surface

Nanoscale crystals of CuS are synthesized by a wet chemical method in water and modified with 1-dodecanethiol. Double drop mixing of strong solutions of CuCl2 and Na2S with their dilution in situ is used for synthesis. The synthesized nanoparticles are examined by the methods of dynamic light scattering, X-ray diffraction analysis, transmission electron microscopy, and IR and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.

Chemical Modification of the Surface of Highly Dispersed Metal Salt Crystals

Approaches to chemical modification of surfaces of metal salt crystals, which until recently are not considered objects for surface modification, are collected and analyzed. Possibilities of postsynthetic modification and modification in situ during synthesis of metal salt nanoparticles are discussed. Data for structures of the surface complexes forming upon the interaction of modifiers (organic molecules) and ions on a particle surface and the stability and properties of such complexes are given. Areas of and prospects for practical application of different surface-modified metal salts are shown.

Production of highly dispersed sodium chloride: Strategy and experiment

Various methods for obtaining highly dispersed sodium chloride in the form of powders and sols in organic solvents were studied and compared. These include the mechanical grinding in a ball mill, laser ablation, cryochemical method, solvent-substitution method, pyrolysis of an aerosol, and a number of chemical methods. The samples obtained were examined by X-ray diffraction, elemental analysis, transmission electron microscopy, and dynamic light scattering technique. The methods for obtaining highly dispersed NaCl were compared in three basic parameters: size of particles being obtained, their size distribution, and productivity. It was shown that, depending on a method used, sodium chloride particles with average sizes in the range from 15–30 nm to 10–20 μm can be obtained.

Regularities of formation and luminescence of zinc sulfide nanoparticles modified with amino acids

The regularities of formation and luminescence of zinc sulfide nanoparticles modified with various amino acids were studied. The luminescence intensity of ZnS sols depends strongly on the nature of the modifier and from 30 to 40 times increases in the case of methionine and glycine or nearly completely disappears in the case of cysteine. Two main stages of formation of unmodified and surface-modified ZnS were revealed: a very rapid formation of ZnS nanoparticles and a relatively slow process of ordering of the internal particle structure with the formation of luminescence centers. In the case of modified objects, the role of such centers could be played by surface zinc ions bound to amino acids.