Infusion of Metal Particles into Organic Materials Using Supercritical Carbon Dioxide

Dispersion of metal particles into polymer materials by the plasticizing effect of supercritical fluids was investigated. Using supercritical carbon dioxide, a metal precursor of Ag (AgFOD) was infused into polymer materials such as poly (methylmethacrylate) (PMMA), polystyrene (PS) and poly (ethylene terephthalate) (PET). The heat treatment reduced the infused precursor into Ag metal, leading to the formation of a fine particle dispersion layer near the surface of the polymer sample. To investigate the relationship between the infused amount of Ag and sorption of carbon dioxide into these samples, AgFOD was infused in each sample in the temperature range of 35 to 70°C, pressure range of 10 to 30MPa, and infusion time of 0.5 to 4h. It was found that the amount of metal particles infused into polymers via supercritical carbon dioxide had a strong relationship with the sorption of carbon dioxide. Moreover, addition of small amount of acetone as an entrainer to supercritical carbon dioxide could increase the infusion of Ag particles into the inner layer of the samples. It should be noted that metal particle infusion into polymers using supercritical CO2 might be controlled by manipulating temperature, pressure, infusion time, and amount of entrainer.