Synthesis of porphyrin nanostructures

摘要

The present disclosure generally relates to self-assembly methods for generating porphyrin nanostructures. For example, in one embodiment a method is provided that includes preparing a porphyrin solution and a surfactant solution. The porphyrin solution is then mixed with the surfactant solution at a concentration sufficient for confinement of the porphyrin molecules by the surfactant molecules. In some embodiments, the concentration of the surfactant is at or above its critical micelle concentration (CMC), which allows the surfactant to template the growth of the nanostructure over time. The size and morphology of the nanostructures may be affected by the type of porphyrin molecules used, the type of surfactant used, the concentration of the porphyrin and surfactant the pH of the mixture of the solutions, and the order of adding the reagents to the mixture, to name a few variables.

主权项

1. A method for producing porphyrin nanostructures, comprising:
preparing a porphyrin solution comprising porphyrin molecules and a surfactant solution comprising surfactant molecules, wherein the porphyrin solution and the surfactant solution are aqueous solutions having different pH; combining the porphyrin solution and the surfactant solution to neutralize the solutions and produce a porphyrin-surfactant mixture, wherein the concentration of the surfactant molecules within the porphyrin-surfactant mixture is above the critical micelle concentration of the surfactant molecules; and agitating the porphyrin-surfactant mixture for an amount of time to produce a plurality of porphyrin nanostructures.