Dynamic self-assembly of detonation nanodiamond in water

Shery L.Y. Chang, Philipp Reineck, Dewight Williams, Gary Bryant, George Opletal, Samir A. El-Demrdash, Po Lin Chiu, Eiji Osawa, Amanda S. Barnard, Christian Dwyer

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

31 Scopus citations

Abstract

Nanodiamonds are increasingly used in many areas of science and technology, yet, their colloidal properties remain poorly understood. Here we use direct imaging as well as light and X-ray scattering reveal that purified detonation nanodiamond (DND) particles in an aqueous environment exhibit a self-assembled lace-like network, even without additional surface modification. Such behaviour is previously unknown and contradicts the current consensus that DND exists as mono-dispersed single particles. With the aid of mesoscale simulations, we show that the lace network is likely the result of competition between a short-ranged electrostatic attraction between faceted particles and a longer-ranged repulsion arising from the interaction between the surface functional groups and the surrounding water molecules which prevents complete flocculation. Our findings have significant implications for applications of DND where control of the aggregation behaviour is critical to performance.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)5363-5367
Number of pages5
JournalNanoscale
Volume12
Issue number9
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 7 2020

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Materials Science

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Dynamic self-assembly of detonation nanodiamond in water'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this