Redispersible dried hydroxyapatite particles with grafted pH-sensitivity polymer brushes of poly(styrene-co-4-vinylpyridine)

Abstract Reversible aggregation–redispersion transition of colloidal particles is of considerable importance in colloidal science and various industrial fields. In the present study, stimuli-responsive hybrid hydroxyapatite (HA) particles were prepared with redispersible ability in aqueous solutions even after separation from the “as synthesized” state and subsequent dry heat treatment. We firstly modified HA particles with sodium oleate as chelating agent, then introduced bromoalkyl functional groups through an addition reaction of unsaturated oleate molecule with bromine, and finally grafted polymer brushes of polystyrene-co-4-vinylpyridine onto HA. It was the pH-sensitive polymer shell that had rendered HA particles the redispersible ability, which was attributed to the protonation of the pyridine blocks in acidic solutions. The reversible dispersion–aggregation transition of HA could be controlled by alternating the pH value of aqueous solution. Protonated pyridine blocks had provided enough electrostatic and steric repulsions for colloidal HA to avoid effective collision.