Oxygen Scavenging Hybrid Nanostructure: Localization of DifferentIron Nanoparticles on Montmorillonite Clays Host

According to the great potential of zero-valent iron nanoparticleapplications in the environmental, medical, chemical, packaging and many otherindustries, there is still a need to tailor their production methods. This studyreports the production of a hybrid nanostructure based on iron nanoparticles(INPs) produced in/on montmorillonite (MMT) nanoclays as an oxygenscavenger and barrier additive in polymeric packaging materials of oxygen-sensitive products. INPs and MMT were demonstrated to have effective mutualinteractions in which the MMT host played a chemophysical trapping role for ironparticles, causing smaller particles around 10 nm with 6.2 g/m2higher specificsurface area by limiting particle growth and agglomeration. In return, theembedding of primary iron cations in/on clays and growth of these particlesduring the reduction reaction pushed the clay layers out and helped further clayintercalation-exfoliation. Effective study of solvent and primary cation (Fe2+/Fe3+) types showed different preferences in interacting with natural andalkylammonium-modified MMT, resulting in the different site selection. Fe2+cations preferred to migrate to the interlayer space,whereas Fe3+cations tended to bond to the clay surface. The obtained results in this study suggest tailoring the ultimate oxygenscavenging capacity, shelf life, and migration properties of a hybrid nanoparticle according to the application requirements.

Automated summary

This study reports the production of a hybrid nanostructure based on iron nanoparticles on montmorillonite nanoclays as an oxygen scavenger and barrier additive in polymeric packaging materials. The interactions between iron nanoparticles and montmorillonite nanoclays were demonstrated to effectively limit particle growth and agglomeration, resulting in smaller nanoparticles with higher specific surface area. Different solvent and primary cation types showed different preferences in interacting with the nanoclays, leading to different site selection. The results suggest the possibility of tailoring the properties of the hybrid nanoparticles for specific applications.