The ongoing BioColor project aims to develop a new hybrid material that can change color in a controlled manner. A key element of this new technology is based on a combination of two phenomena observed in nature and studied in materials: plasmonic and structural colors. The functional nanomaterial being developed will consist of colloidal metal nanoparticles (NPs) that will be properly synthesized and assembled into a 3D printing polymer (3DP) to ensure plasmon color change under thermal and mechanical stresses. The research is carried out in collaboration with partners from France (IS2M-CNRS) who have experience in the synthesis of plasmonic NPs and their color matching and 3DP preparation technologies, and physicists from Lithuania (KTU MMI) specializing in micro and nanotechnology and plasmonics.
Project funding:
Interngovernmental programme administrated by Research Council of Lithuania: Lithuania–France (“GILIBERT”)
Project results:
During the project, Au and Ag NPs of good quality, high homogeneity of sizes and shapes were prepared. To prevent aggregation, they were functionalized with various polymers: PVP, CTAB, and so on. The obtained Au NPs were studied in detail in plasmon properties, with the strongest emphasis on their dynamic plasmonic properties, which were studied by ultrafast differential absorption spectrometry (TAS). Functionalized small-sized dispersion NPs were deposited on a structured polymer matrix using capillary deposition (CAPA) techniques. This method was able to obtain hybrid materials in which metal NPs were periodically deposited in the polymer matrix. The project also sought to develop more innovative, new hybrid preparation methods called “ex-situ process” (synthesized NPs are embedded in the 3DP matrix) and “in-situ process” (NPs are synthesized in the 3DP matrix). Both of these methods have succeeded in obtaining hybrid materials, and these methods seem promising for the development of future hybrid materials.
Period of project implementation: 2021-01-04 - 2022-12-31
Project coordinator: Kaunas University of Technology
Project partners: The Mulhouse Materials Science Institute (IS2M)
