Apr 9 2010
Masateru Nishioka, Catalysis Team, the Research Center for Compact Chemical Process of the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology and K. K. Shinko Kagaku Kogyosho have jointly developed continuous production equipment for metal nanoparticles and have succeeded in the practical use of a process where metal nanoparticles are synthesized continuously with uniform quality. The continuous production equipment for metal nanoparticles is developed utilizing a technology for microwave flow reactors jointly developed by AIST and IDX Co., Ltd.
Although it has been known that metal nanoparticles with a uniform size can be synthesized in a short time by applying microwave irradiation to reactant solution, the continuous synthesis suitable for industrial production has been difficult. AIST had developed a technology for applying a concentrated and uniform microwave to a tubular reactor by using a semiconductor microwave source. In this joint research, the irradiation technology was optimized for a metal nanoparticle synthesis and the safe equipment for the continuous synthesis of metal nanoparticles with stable quality was put into practical use.
Because the conventional production of various kinds of metal nanoparticles has been carried out in batch operation, there are problems such as considerable time and effort required for maintenance including the change of reaction solution and washing in each batch, stability of quality, and the environmental load by waste water treatment. The equipment developed here overcame these problems and allowed the continuous synthesis and stable quality of synthesized metal nanoparticles.
The details of this technology will be exhibited at nano tech 2010 International Nanotechnology Exhibition & Conference, held from February 17 to 19, 2010, at Tokyo Big Sight.