High-throughput platform for synthesis of melamine-formaldehyde microcapsules

Abstract

The synthesis of microcapsules via in situ polymerization is a labor-intensive and time-consuming process, where many composition and process factors affect the microcapsule formation and its morphology. Herein, we report a novel combinatorial technique for the preparation of melamine-formaldehyde microcapsules, using a custom-made and automated high-throughput platform (HTP). After performing validation experiments for ensuring the accuracy and reproducibility of the novel platform, a design of experiment study was performed. The influence of different encapsulation parameters was investigated, such as the effect of the surfactant, surfactant type, surfactant concentration and core/shell ratio. As a result, this HTP-platform is suitable to be used for the synthesis of different types of microcapsules in an automated and controlled way, allowing the screening of different reaction parameters in a shorter time compared to the manual synthetic techniques.