Showing papers on "Polystyrene published in 2006"

Porous structure of hypercrosslinked polystyrene: State-of-the-art mini-review

Abstract: The paper evaluates accumulated information about the apparent inner surface area ( S app ), pore volume ( W o ), pore size (diameter, D ), and pore size distribution (PSD) of the single-phase hypercrosslinked polystyrene networks prepared by an intensive post-crosslinking of either dissolved linear polystyrene or swollen gel-type styrene–divinylbenzene copolymers. Critical analysis of data obtained by conventional physical methods used for the characterization of porous solids (low temperature adsorption of nitrogen or argon, mercury intrusion porosimetry, inversed size exclusion chromatography, electronic microscopy, positronium annihilation) reveals the most trustworthy porosity parameters of the above hypercrosslinked polystyrene resins as S app ⩾ 1000 m 2 /g, W o in the range of 0.3–0.5 cm 3 /g, D in dry networks from 4–5 to 30 A and only slightly increasing in swollen samples. The hypercrosslinked networks thus present first basically microporous polymeric material that exhibits narrow PSD resulting from a statistically uniform distribution of crosslinks.

Synthesis of Nonspherical Colloidal Particles with Anisotropic Properties

Abstract: We describe a promising and flexible technique for fabricating uniform nonspherical particles with anisotropic phase and surface properties. Our approach is based on the seeded polymerization technique in which monomer-swollen particles are polymerized. The polymerization causes a phase separation to occur, giving rise to two-phase nonspherical particles. We show that the elastic contraction of the swollen polymer particles induced by elevated polymerization temperatures plays an important role in the phase separation. Moreover, chemical anisotropy of nonspherical particles can be obtained by using immiscible polymer pairs and by employing surface treatments. Furthermore, we are able to produce amphiphilic dumbbell particles consisting of two different bulbs: hydrophilic poly (ethylene imine)-coated polystyrene and hydrophobic polystyrene. Controlled geometries of these amphiphilic nonspherical particles will allow a wide range of potential applications, such as engineered colloid surfactants.

Polymer-Nanoparticle Interfacial Interactions in Polymer Nanocomposites: Confinement Effects on Glass Transition Temperature and Suppression of Physical Aging.

Abstract: The effects of confinement on glass transition temperature (Tg) and physical aging are measured in polystyrene (PS), poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), and poly(2-vinyl pyridine) (P2VP) nanocomposites containing 10- to 15-nm-diameter silica nanospheres or 47-nm-diameter alumina nanospheres. Nanocomposites are made by spin coating films from sonicated solutions of polymer, nanofiller, and dye. The Tgs and physical aging rates are measured by fluorescence of trace levels of dye in the films. At 0.1–10 vol % nanofiller, Tg values can be enhanced or depressed relative to neat, bulk Tg (Tg,bulk) or invariant with nanofiller content. For alumina nanocomposites, Tg increases relative to Tg,bulk by as much as 16 K in P2VP, decreases by as much as 5 K in PMMA, and is invariant in PS. By analogy with thin polymer films, these results are explained by wetted P2VP–nanofiller interfaces with attractive interactions, nonwetted PMMA–nanofiller interfaces (free space at the interface), and wetted PS–nanofiller interfaces lacking attractive interactions, respectively. The presence of wetted or nonwetted interfaces is controlled by choice of solvent. For example, 0.1–0.6 vol % silica/PMMA nanocomposites exhibit Tg enhancements as large as 5 K or Tg reductions as large as 17 K relative to Tg,bulk when films are made from methyl ethyl ketone or acetic acid solutions, respectively. A factor of 17 reduction of physical aging rate relative to that of neat, bulk P2VP is demonstrated in a 4 vol % alumina/P2VP nanocomposite. This suggests that a strategy for achieving nonequilibrium, glassy polymeric systems that are stable or nearly stable to physical aging is to incorporate well-dispersed nanoparticles possessing attractive interfacial interactions with the polymer. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 2935–2943, 2006

Polymer-nanoparticle interfacial interactions in polymer nanocomposites: Confinement effects on glass transition temperature and suppression of physical aging

Abstract: The effects of confinement on glass transition temperature (Tg) and physical aging are measured in polystyrene (PS), poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), and poly(2-vinyl pyridine) (P2VP) nanocomposites containing 10- to 15-nm-diameter silica nanospheres or 47-nm-diameter alumina nanospheres. Nanocomposites are made by spin coating films from sonicated solutions of polymer, nanofiller, and dye. The Tgs and physical aging rates are measured by fluorescence of trace levels of dye in the films. At 0.1–10 vol % nanofiller, Tg values can be enhanced or depressed relative to neat, bulk Tg (Tg,bulk) or invariant with nanofiller content. For alumina nanocomposites, Tg increases relative to Tg,bulk by as much as 16 K in P2VP, decreases by as much as 5 K in PMMA, and is invariant in PS. By analogy with thin polymer films, these results are explained by wetted P2VP–nanofiller interfaces with attractive interactions, nonwetted PMMA–nanofiller interfaces (free space at the interface), and wetted PS–nanofiller interfaces lacking attractive interactions, respectively. The presence of wetted or nonwetted interfaces is controlled by choice of solvent. For example, 0.1–0.6 vol % silica/PMMA nanocomposites exhibit Tg enhancements as large as 5 K or Tg reductions as large as 17 K relative to Tg,bulk when films are made from methyl ethyl ketone or acetic acid solutions, respectively. A factor of 17 reduction of physical aging rate relative to that of neat, bulk P2VP is demonstrated in a 4 vol % alumina/P2VP nanocomposite. This suggests that a strategy for achieving nonequilibrium, glassy polymeric systems that are stable or nearly stable to physical aging is to incorporate well-dispersed nanoparticles possessing attractive interfacial interactions with the polymer. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 2935–2943, 2006

Hierarchical modeling of polystyrene: From atomistic to coarse-grained simulations

Abstract: We present a hierarchical approach that combines atomistic and mesoscopic simulations that can generally be applied to vinyl polymers. As a test case, the approach is applied to atactic polystyrene (PS). First, a specific model for atactic PS is chosen. The bonded parameters in the coarse-grained force field, based on data obtained from atomistic simulations of isolated PS dimers, are chosen in a way which allows to differentiate between meso and racemic dyads. This approach in principle allows to study isotactic and syndiotactic melts as well. Nonbonded interactions between coarse-grained beads were chosen as purely repulsive. The proposed mesoscopic model reproduces both the local structure and the chain dimensions properly. An explicit time mapping is performed, based on the atomistic and CG mean-square displacements of short chains, demonstrating an effective speed up of about 3 orders of magnitude compared to brute force atomistic simulations. Finally the equilibrated coarse-grained chains are back mapped onto the atomistic systems. This opens new routes for obtaining well equilibrated high molecular weight polymeric systems and also providing very long dynamic trajectories at the atomistic level for these polymers.

Stable, Superhydrophobic, and Conductive Polyaniline/Polystyrene Films for Corrosive Environments

Abstract: A polyaniline/polystyrene composite film with a lotus-leaf-like structure is prepared via a simple electrospinning method. The film shows stable superhydrophobicity and conductivity, even in many corrosive solutions, such as acidic or basic solutions over a wide pH range, and also in oxidizing solutions. The special surface composition and morphology are the two important aspects that induce such unusual properties. The polystyrene content can strongly influence the morphology of the composite films, which thus display different superhydrophobicities and conductivities.

Development of high magnetization Fe3O4/polystyrene/silica nanospheres via combined miniemulsion/emulsion polymerization.

Abstract: Monodispersed, hydrophilic, superparamagnetic magnetic nanospheres with a high fraction of magnetite were synthesized by combining modified miniemulsion/emulsion polymerization and sol-gel technique for the first time. The surface of the nanospheres was coated by a silica layer with controlled thickness. Transmission electron microscopy experimental results showed well-proportioned, equal-sized, magnetite/polystyrene (Fe3O4/PS) nanospheres with a thin silica shell. Based on the TGA data, the fraction of magnetite in the Fe3O4/PS nanospheres core was estimated to be 80 wt %. Magnetization measurements indicated that the superparamagnetic nature of the nanospheres had high saturation magnetization of 40 emu/g at 300 K. The procedures of the novel synthesis are described in detail. Also discussed are the mechanisms of the novel combined miniemulsion/emulsion polymerization processes.

Oriented colloidal-crystal thin films by spin-coating microspheres dispersed in volatile media

Abstract: One of the main obstacles for putting into practice the interesting optical and structural properties of colloidal crystals in actual devices is the incompatibility of the time-consuming and unclean self-assembly crystallization techniques commonly used to make colloidal crystals with the fast and dirtfree technology required to fabricate devices. With this in mind, different approaches have been taken and outstanding improvements affecting both the crystalline quality and the ease of fabrication have been achieved. However, most techniques developed to date are very sensitive to small variations of ambient humidity or temperature, which affect the lattice thickness and degree of crystallinity, and make it difficult to tailor the properties of the material. Also, it takes a few days for crystals to deposit on the substrate, or at least a few hours if precise temperature control is achieved. Finally, increasing the area on which the crystal is deposited up to at least the size of a wafer would require the use of a large amount of spheres and large baths, which, in turn, would increase the length of the process and complicate the fine control of the different parameters involved. Recently, a new approach to colloidal crystallization of submicrometer diameter spheres that overcomes some of the obstacles mentioned above has been proposed: Jiang et al. developed a procedure to prepare thin colloidal silica–polymer composite films based on spin-coating. In brief, silica colloidal spheres are first dispersed in a mixture of a viscous triacrylate monomer and a photoinitiator. The non-volatile dispersion is then spin-coated on a silicon wafer to obtain a thin layer. As the dispersion smears on the substrate, shearing induces 3D ordering of the particles in the monomer matrix, which is photopolymerized later on, providing mechanical stability for the structure. Selective removal of either the polymer matrix or the particles results in the formation of a direct silica or inverse polymer colloidal-crystal structure, respectively. Although it constitutes a formidable step forward in terms of colloidal-crystal processing, this technique still presents a series of drawbacks that may limit its application. First, it employs a viscous, dense monomer solution as the dispersion medium, which implies that lengthy and thorough stirring is needed to ensure the suspension is aggregate-free before spin-coating. Second, this monomer solution must be photopolymerized to be stabilized; thus, the resulting composite presents no porosity and a very low refractive-index contrast, which makes it useless for most foreseen applications. Only after further selective etching is porosity recovered, and the dielectric contrast is high enough to present an intense diffraction peak. Finally, this method cannot be easily extended to the crystallization of the different types of monodisperse latex particles usually employed in the field, since the common organic nature of both particles and matrix would make almost impossible the final selective elimination of one of them by plasma, thermal, or most organic liquid etchings. In this communication, we present a simple and reliable method to crystallize submicrometer monodisperse silica and latex colloids using a mixture of volatile solvents as dispersion media, allowing one to attain a strongly diffracting opal-like structure within minutes without further processing. A thorough study of the influence of the different relevant parameters, namely particle concentration and relative concentration of each solvent in the dispersion medium, was carried out. In the course of our investigations, we found that it was possible not only to attain planarized colloidal crystals with controlled thickness and good optical quality, but also to determine the crystal growth direction with respect to the substrate, which implies a major qualitative improvement with respect to previous techniques. Evidence of such control is obtained from both electron microscopy and optical spectroscopy. Colloidal suspensions of two types (Stober SiO2 and sulfonated polystyrene) were prepared by dispersing monodisperse sediments in different mixtures of ethanol, distilled water, and ethylene glycol (EG). These compounds were chosen attending to the ease of dispersion of the colloidal particles in them, their viscosity, and their volatility. Colloidal particles were first suspended in ethanol, distilled water, or mixtures of both, and then EG was added to decrease the vapor pressure of the suspension media. By doing so, our intention was to obtain a medium that required a long time to evaporate allowing particles to order by shearing, as reported in the literature, but volatile enough so that it would practically disappear after a few minutes. C O M M U N IC A TI O N S

Luminescent triarylborane-functionalized polystyrene: synthesis, photophysical characterization, and anion-binding studies.

Abstract: A new class of highly fluorescent triarylborane polymers has been prepared from trimethylsilyl-substituted polystyrene via a modular approach that involves selective polymer modification reactions with organometallic reagents. The photophysical properties, environmental stability, and the Lewis acidity of the boron sites have been tailored through modifications in the substitution pattern on boron. The photophysical properties are indicative of electronic communication between the chromophores attached to polystyrene, which has been exploited for the efficient probing of fluoride and cyanide in the micromolar concentration range.

Synthesis of silver nanoshell-coated cationic polystyrene beads: A solid phase catalyst for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol

Abstract: Silver nanoshell-coated cationic polystyrene beads have been synthesized at room temperature through immobilization of specific silver precursor ions, followed by wet chemical reduction. The electrostatic field force has been taken into consideration for the immobilization of precursor ions onto the resin beads. The as-synthesized particles were characterized by XRD, XPS, SEM, TEM, EDX, and FTIR studies and have been exploited as a solid phase catalyst for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol in the presence of sodium borohydride. The detailed kinetics of the reduction process was monitored under varied experimental conditions. At the end of the reaction, the catalyst particles remain active. They can thus be separated from the product, 4-aminophenol, and can be recycled a number of times after the quantitative reduction of 4-nitrophenol. The activity of the solid catalyst particles has also been examined to promote the reduction of other nitrophenols, e.g., 2-, 3-nitrophenol. The synthesis of the solid catalyst particles, their applications and detailed kinetic aspects of the reduction of 4-nitrophenol have been reported.

ChemMatrix, a poly(ethylene glycol)-based support for the solid-phase synthesis of complex peptides.

Abstract: CM (ChemMatrix) resin is a new, totally poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-based resin, made exclusively from primary ether bonds and, therefore, highly chemically stable It exhibits good loading and is user-friendly because of its free-flowing form upon drying It performs excellently for the preparation of hydrophobic, highly structured, and poly-Arg peptides, as compared to polystyrene (PS) resins In the most striking example, stepwise solid-phase assembly of the highly complex beta-amyloid (1-42) peptide resulted in a crude material of 91% purity In contrast, literature procedures using PS or PEG-PS-based resins for this peptide required convergent approaches, additional time-consuming steps, or both In addition to the difficulties of its synthesis, characterization of the beta-amyloid (1-42) peptide as a monomer is also a challenge, and methods for characterization by HPLC and MALDI-TOF have also been developed

Self-Assembled Polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene oxide) Micelle Morphologies in Solution

Abstract: We have investigated the self-assembly behavior of an amphiphilic diblock copolymer, polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene oxide) (PS-b-PEO), in N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF)/water and DMF/acetonitrile. In...

Hybrid particle-field simulations of polymer nanocomposites.

Abstract: We present a theoretical framework and computer simulation methodology for investigating the equilibrium structure and properties of mesostructured polymeric fluids with embedded colloids or nanoparticles. The method is based on a field-theoretic description of the fluid in which particle coordinates and chemical potential field variables are simultaneously updated. The fluid model can contain polymers of arbitrary chemical and architectural complexity, along with particles of all shapes, sizes, and surface treatments. Simulation results are compared with experiments conducted on polystyrene (PS)-functionalized Au nanoparticles in a PS-P2VP diblock copolymer melt.

Formation of a miscible supramolecular polymer blend through self-assembly mediated by a quadruply hydrogen-bonded heterocomplex

Abstract: A supramolecular network polymer consisting of a pair of immiscible polymers, poly(butyl)methacrylate (PBMA) and polystyrene (PS), is described. A urea of guanosine (1, UG) and 2,7-diamido-1,8-naphthyridine (2, DAN), which form an exceptionally strong quadruply hydrogen-bonding complex, are displayed at 1−10 mol % along the main backbone of PBMA and PS, respectively. 1H NMR studies show heterocomplexation between UG and DAN exclusively. This high-fidelity, high-affinity supramolecular connection of two different polymer coils at the molecular level produces a polymer blend. Blends containing different weight ratios of the polymers and mole percent of the recognition units were characterized by AFM and DSC experiments with no isolated domains observed and a single glass-transition temperature (Tg). The Tg is tunable by varying the weight ratio of the polymers in the blend. In addition, viscosity measurements, size-exclusion chromatography (SEC), and dynamic light-scattering (DLS) studies demonstrate the fo...

A novel method for the fabrication of monodisperse hollow silica spheres.

Abstract: In this paper, we report a novel method for the fabrication of small monodisperse hollow silica spheres. In this approach, when silica shells were coated on polystyrene particles by the sol-gel method, the polystyrene cores were dissolved subsequently, even synchronously, in the same medium to form monodisperse hollow spheres. Neither additional dissolution nor a calcination process was needed to remove the polystyrene cores. Transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and porosity measurements were used to characterize the monodisperse hollow silica spheres.

Controlling the thermomechanical properties of polymer nanocomposites by tailoring the polymer–particle interface

Abstract: We show that the thermomechanical properties of polymer nanocomposites are critically affected by polymer-particle wetting behavior. Silica nanoparticles grafted with dense polystyrene brushes of degree of polymerization 1050 are blended with polystyrene melts to form nanocomposites. It was found that low molecular weight (MW) polystyrene melts with lengths <880 wet these particles. Concurrently, the glass transition temperature (Tg) of the nanocomposite increases. At higher MW, the matrix does not wet the particles and the Tg decreases. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 2944–2950, 2006

Low Electrical Percolation Threshold of Silver and Copper Nanowires in Polystyrene Composites

Abstract: Silver and copper nanowires have been synthesized using a scalable method of AC electrodeposition into porous aluminum oxide templates, which produces gram quantities of metal nanowires ca. 25 nm in diameter and up to 5 and 10 μm in length for Ag and Cu, respectively. The nanowires have been used to prepare polystyrene nanocomposites by solution processing. Electrical resistivity measurements performed on polymer nanocomposites containing different volume fractions of metal indicate that low percolation thresholds of nanowires are attained between compositions of 0.25 and 0.75 vol %.

Differential AC-chip calorimeter for glass transition measurements in ultrathin films

Abstract: A differential AC-chip calorimeter capable of measuring the step in heat capacity at the glass transition in nanometer-thin films is described. Because of the differential setup, pJ/K sensitivity is achieved. Heat capacity can be measured for sample masses below 1 ng in broad temperature range as needed for the study of the glass transition in nanometer-thin polymeric films. Relative accuracy is sufficient to investigate the changes in heat capacity as the step at the glass transition of polystyrene. The step is about 25% of the total heat capacity of polystyrene. The calorimeter allows for the frequency dependent measurement of complex heat capacity in the frequency range from 1 Hz to 1 kHz. The glass transition in thin polystyrene films (50–4 nm) was determined at well-defined experimental time scales. No thickness dependency of the glass transition temperature was observed within the error limits (±3 K)—neither at constant frequency (40 Hz) nor for the trace in the activation diagram (1 Hz–1 kHz). © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 2996–3005, 2006

In-situ encapsulation of quantum dots into polymer microspheres.

Abstract: We have incorporated fluorescent quantum dots (QDs) into polystyrene microspheres using functionalized oligomeric phosphine (OP) ligands. We find that a uniform distribution of quantum dots is loaded inside each polymer bead. Some local close-packing of quantum dots in the beads is attributed to the self-polymerization of the functionalized ligands. The presence of quantum dots disturbs the nucleation and growth processes during the formation of polymer microspheres and results in a wider size distribution of the quantum dot-embedded polystyrene beads than for the control without dots. The change in quantum efficiency of the quantum dots before (∼20%) and after (12%) loading into the beads substantiates the protection of oligomeric phosphine ligands yet indicates that the properties of these quantum dots are still affected during processing.

Effect of colloidal stabilizer on the shape of polystyrene/poly(methyl methacrylate) composite particles prepared in aqueous medium by the solvent evaporation method.

Abstract: Effects of the kind and concentration of stabilizers on the nonspherical shape of polystyrene (PS)/poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) composite particles prepared by release of toluene from PS/PMMA/toluene droplets dispersed in stabilizer aqueous solution were examined. In the case of poly(vinyl alcohol), the surfaces of the obtained particles always had a single dimple. In the case of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), the shapes of the composite particles changed from the dimple, via acorn, to spherical with increasing SDS concentration. It was clarified that the dimple and acorn shapes of the PS/PMMA composite particles were caused by contraction of the PS phase after hardening of the PMMA phase in excentered core-shell and hemisphere morphologies, respectively, which were formed by phase separation during toluene evaporation.

Boron nitride nanotubes/polystyrene composites

Abstract: Boron nitride nanotube (BNNT)/polystyrene (PS) composite films were fabricated for the first time using high-quality BNNTs synthesized via a chemical-vapor-deposition method. The composite films exhibited good transparency. Tensile tests indicated that the elastic modulus of the films was increased by ∼21% when a ∼1 wt% soluble BNNT fraction was in use. Dispersion of BNNTs in PS and interfacial interactions between them were investigated using transmission electron microscopy. The film thermal properties, such as stability to oxidation and glass transition temperatures were measured. The experimental results and simple theoretical estimates indicate that BNNTs is a promising additive material for polymeric composites.

Synthesis of Monocyclic and Linear Polystyrene Using the Reversible Coupling/Cleavage of Thiol/Disulfide Groups

Abstract: By carefully controlling the concentration of α,ω-thiol polystyrene in solution, we achieved formation of unique monocyclic polystyrene chains (i.e., polymer chains with only one disulfide linkage). The presence of cyclic polystyrene was confirmed by its lower than expected molecular weight due to a lower hydrodynamic volume and loss of thiol groups as detected by using Ellman's reagent. The α,ω-thiol polystyrene was synthesized by polymerizing styrene in the presence of a difunctional RAFT agent and subsequent conversion of the dithioester end groups to thiols via the addition of hexylamine. Oxidation gave either monocyclic polymer chains (i.e., with only one disulfide linkage) or linear multiblock polymers with many disulfide linkages depending on the concentration of polymer used with greater chance of cyclization in more dilute solutions. At high polymer concentrations, linear multiblock polymers were formed. To control the MWD of these linear multiblocks, monofunctional X−PSTY (X = PhCH2C(S)−S−) was ...

Biocompatibility of native and functionalized single-walled carbon nanotubes for neuronal interface.

Abstract: Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) have unique mechanical, electrical, and optical properties and can be easily chemically modified; features that make them excellent candidate materials for applications as sensors and stimulators in neuronal tissue engineering. The purpose of this study was to demonstrate that SWNTs can support neuronal attachment and growth, that simple chemical modifications can be employed to control cell growth, that SWNTs do not interfere with ongoing neuronal function, and that neurons can be electrically coupled to SWNTs. Growth and attachment of the neuroblastoma*glioma NG108, a model neuronal cell, was assessed on unmodified SWNT substrates or substrates from SWNTs modified with 4-benzoic acid or 4-tert-butylphenyl functional groups using a simple functionalization method. SWNT films support cell growth, but at a reduced level compared to tissue culture-treated polystyrene. The order of viability and cell attachment was tissue culture treated polystyrene > SWNTs > 4-tert-butylphenyl-functionalized SWNTs > 4-benzoic acid-functionalized SWNTs. Decreased cell growth after culture on untreated (non adherent) polystyrene suggested that cell attachment was a critical determinant of proliferation and cell growth on SWNTs. Fluorescence and scanning electron microscopy revealed decreased neurite outgrowth in NG108 grown on SWNT substrates. We are also among the first groups to demonstrate electrical coupling of SWNTs and neurons by demonstrating that NG108 and rat primary peripheral neurons showed robust voltage-activated currents when electrically stimulated through transparent, conductive SWNT films. Our data suggest that SWNTs are flexible resource materials for tissue engineering application involving electrically excitable tissues such as muscles and nerves.

A two step chemo-biotechnological conversion of polystyrene to a biodegradable thermoplastic.

Abstract: A novel approach to the recycling of polystyrene is reported here; polystyrene is converted to a biodegradable plastic, namely polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA). This unique combinatorial approach involve...

Synthesis of Quantum Dot-Tagged Submicrometer Polystyrene Particles by Miniemulsion Polymerization

Abstract: Submicrometer fluorescent polystyrene (PS) particles have been synthesized via miniemulsion polymerization using CdSe/ZnS core-shell quantum dots (QDs). The influence of QD concentration, QD coating (either trioctylphosphine oxide (TOPO)-coated or vinyl-functionalized), and surfactant concentration on the polymerization kinetics and the photoluminescence properties of the prepared particles has been analyzed. Polymerization kinetics were not altered by the presence of QDs, whatever their surface coating. Latexes exhibited particle sizes ranging from 100 to 350 nm, depending on surfactant concentration, and a narrow particle size distribution was obtained in all cases. The fluorescence signal of the particles increased with the number of incorporated TOPO-coated QDs. The slight red shift of the emission maximum was correlated with phase separation between PS and QDs, which occurred during the polymerization, locating the QDs in the vicinity of the particle/water interface. QD-tagged particles displayed higher fluorescence intensity with TOPO-coated QDs compared to those with the vinyl moiety. The obtained fluorescent particles open up new opportunities for a variety of applications in biotechnology.