I-Corps: Making a Stable Colloid from Small Molecules

University Of Maryland, College Park, College Park MD

Investigators

Abstract

The purpose of this project is the development of a product design based on the discovery of stable aqueous colloids. Such a colloidal system, with a particle size of about one hundred nanometer, consists only of small simple molecules, in contrast to current industrial processes where the addition of surfactants, electrolytes, or viscosity modifiers is needed. Colloids are widely used in medicine and industry to create liquid-based products such as pharmaceuticals, food/beverages, agrochemicals. The process consists of creating a colloidal system by dispersing hydrophobic compounds in an aqueous medium and stabilizing them by small amphiphilic molecules known as hydrotropes. Low molecular weight alcohols are typical examples of hydrotropes. The creation of such a system requires only simple mixing, thus contributing to significant savings in raw materials, equipment, and energy costs. This technology, so far, has been proven for dispersing hydrophobic compounds such as cyclohexane. This proposal aims to connect fundamental research discoveries and potential novel applications, so that this research can be transformed into new products, processes, and services. This interdisciplinary project is at the intersection of physical chemistry, molecular physics, materials science, and chemical engineering. The proposed research will enrich engineering education, by bridging the gap between fundamentals, applications, and commercialization. In addition to anticipated commercial targets, which include pharmaceuticals, food/beverages, agrochemicals, cosmetics/detergents, the relevant commercial landscape can be further extended to a much broader list of industrial and medical applications, such as nano-encapsulated drug delivery or soft-matter engineering. Recently, the interest in aqueous solutions of propanol and butanol isomers, as a new clean energy source, has greatly increased because such alcohols are considered promising alternatives to ethanol. These alcohols can be produced via metabolic engineering, which involves bacteria. Making nanosize colloids in these solutions could enable one to control the rate of metabolism through encapsulation of bacteria.