Preparation of NaCl nanopartides in nonaqueous reverse microemulsion

Water-soluble NaCl nanoparticles were prepared by reacting NaAc with HCl in ethanol/Brij 30/hexadecane microemulsion. The particles obtained are crystalline spheres with an average particle size of about 60 run. In the case of using formamide/AOT/ n-heptane microemulsion as the reaction medium, NaCl particles can only be obtained by adding precipitant after the reaction. The latter particles are crystalline cubes with a much larger particle size (1 mum). The results show that nonaqueous reverse microemulsion may provide a new medium for the preparation of water-soluble nanoparticles and the choice of the polar solvent is critical to obtain nanosized materials.