Fabrication, characterization, and supercooling suppression of nanoencapsulated n-octadecane with methyl methacrylate–octadecyl methacrylate copolymer shell

Supercooling of micro- and nanoencapsulated phase change material is widely observed as their diameters depress to a limitation upon cooling. The aim of this study is to suppress the supercooling of nanoencapsulated n-octadecane (NanoC18) using a novel copolymer consisting of long n-alkyl side chains as shell. Nanoencapsulations of n-octadecane with various compositions of poly(methyl methacrylate-co-octadecyl methacrylate) copolymer as shells were carried out by means of miniemulsion polymerization. Fabrication, morphology, diameter distributions, phase change behaviours, and thermal stabilities of nanocapsules were investigated using Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy, a field-emission scanning electron microscope, a transmission electron microscope, particle size distribution analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, and thermogravimetric analysis. The results indicate that a series of nanocapsules with core/shell structure and spherical shapes are fabricated with average diameters ranging from 373 to 398 nm. The average thickness of the shells is about 60 nm. All the NanoC18 crystallize into a stable triclinic phase via a metastable rotator phase (R_I) from the liquid phase. The crystallization temperature of n-octadecane within poly(methyl methacrylate) nanocapsules is considerably lower than that in bulk phase. Supercooling is effectively suppressed using the comb-like copolymer with crystallizable n-octadecyl side chains as shell. Octadecyl methacrylate is not only employed as a reactive costabilizer to suppress the influence of Ostwald ripening during the formation of nanocapsules but also as a functional monomer in the composition of the copolymer shell in order to suppress the supercooling of NanoC18.