Synthesis of sol–gel silica particles in reverse micelles with mixed-solvent polar cores: tailoring nanoreactor structure and properties

In this paper, we describe a new approach for producing metal oxide nano- and microparticles via sol–gel processing in confined media (sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl)sulfosuccinate reverse micelles), in which the chemical and physical properties of the polar aqueous core of the reverse micelles are modulated by the inclusion of a second polar co-solvent. The co-solvents were selected for their capacity to solubilise compounds with low water solubility and included dimethylsulfoxide, dimethylformamide, ethylene glycol, n-propanol, dimethylacetamide and N-methylpyrrolidone. A broad range of processing conditions across the sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl)sulfosuccinate/cyclohexane/water phase diagram were identified that are suitable for preparing particles with dimensions 500 nm. In contrast, only a relatively narrow range of processing conditions were suitable for preparing such particles in the absence of the co-solvents, highlighting the role of the co-solvent in modulating the properties of the polar core of the reverse micelles. A mechanism is proposed that links the interactions between the various reactive sites on the polar head group of the surfactant and the co-solvent to the nucleation and growth of the particles.