How nanoparticles reduce surface energy
:
- Combine individual nanostructures together
To form large structures
Reduce surface area
- Agglomeration of individual nanostructure
Without altering
Mechanism >
Sintering
Ostwald ripening
Individual structure merge together
Smaller structures expense to grow large structures
Mechanisms
Surface atoms/ions shift inwardly
Surface restructuring
Combining surface dangling bonds into strained new chemical bond
Surface absorption through chemical/physical absorption of terminal chemical species onto surface
By forming chemical bond/ weak attraction force
Composition segregation / impurity enrichment
On surface through solid-state diffusion