title: Nanofiber formation of hydroxylpropylcellulose (HPC).
abstract: The aggregative behaviors of hydroxypropylcellulose (HPC) molecules in aqueous solution and on substrates have been observed by employing laser light scattering (LLS) and, after deposition on a mica surface, atomic force microscopy (AFM). LLS studies showed that the HPC molecules formed large aggregates through self-association when the concentration of the solution was above the critical concentration c(t). AFM measurements revealed that when a dilute aqueous solution of HPC molecules was deposited onto a mica substrate at a temperature below its lower critical solution temperature (LCST) thin nanofibers were formed with a height of 0.9 nm, whereas thick nanofibers were formed when an aqueous solution of HPC molecules was deposited onto a substrate above its LCST. Furthermore, the growth of nanofibers led to the formation of fan structures.
authors.affiliation: Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and Department of Chemical Physics, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, P. R. China. lfyan@ustc.edu.cn
authors.forename: Lifeng
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Prakriti R
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Bangal
mesh_terms: D002482:Cellulose / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000648:ultrastructure; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry*; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D014867:Water; D002482:Cellulose; C008079:hydroxypropylcellulose