TORONTO, March 21 (UPI) -- University of Toronto scientists say they've created a nanoscale material that might lead to new methods for delivering medications via skin patches.
The material, known as periodic mesoporous organosilica, is a thin film interspersed with pores just two-billionths of a meter across. The team created it by mixing an organosilica precursor (silica glass, containing organic groups) with a surfactant, causing the organosilica to self-assemble into a nanostructure.
The scientists then washed away the surfactant to leave a nanoporous material that makes an excellent insulator, which could also be used to separate tiny wires inside microelectronics.
"It demonstrates how creative chemistry can lead to really interesting engineering -- it's a good marriage," said Benjamin Hatton, who led the work while a PhD candidate at the university. "Technology can develop in unexpected ways, and what we've found here could lead to developments in microelectronics or drug delivery systems. This is an example of how materials chemistry can provide innovative solutions to the design of novel materials."
The study appears on the cover of the March issue of the journal Materials Today.
