Improvement of suspension stability and electrophoresis of nanodiamond powder by fluorination

Fluorinated nanodiamond (F-ND) was prepared by annealing ND in fluorine gas. The fluorine gas was periodically fed to ensure uniform exposure of every diamond nanoparticle in homogenous reactive ambience. The characteristics of the F-ND particles were investigated by the following methods: Fourier-transform infrared absorption spectroscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer, X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. The results showed that the fluorine atoms were chemically adsorbed on the surface of the ND particles and consequently formed Csingle bondF bonds. Fluorine of 6.4 wt.% was detected on the F-ND surface. The aggregated ND particles were disintegrated by the fluorination and the size of aggregated ND was reduced from approximately several hundred nanometers to about 40 nm. The stability of the F-ND suspension in distilled water or ethanol was higher than that of the pristine ND suspension. The anodic electrophoretic deposition of the F-ND particles was derived using ethanol suspension, indicating that the F-ND particles were negatively charged.