2022 Volume 1 Issue 2 Pages 70-78
Due to their high specific surface areas, the properties of nanomaterials can be controlled by appropriate surface functionalization. However, precise control has been rarely achieved due to the lack of a reliable quantitative methodology for their functionalization and characterization. We have found that the polyglycerol (PG) functionalization can be applied to various nanomaterials to give them high aqueous dispersibility. The PG functionalization also enabled homogenous conditions in the reactions, purification and characterization of nanomaterials, allowing us to apply methodologies and/or principles in organic chemistry to nanomaterials. Among the many nanomaterials, nanodiamond (ND) is chosen as a typical carbonaceous nanomaterial, because it has been attracting considerable attention, especially in the fields of biology and medicine. We summarize the 1) controlled functionalization of ND with PG and the production of derivatives from it, 2) quantitative characterization of its structures by thermogravimetric analysis as well as solution-phase nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and combustion elemental analysis, which are conventional analytical methods in organic chemistry, and 3) relationships between its structures and physical and biochemical properties such as zeta potential and protein affinity.
