Patent ID: 8158194

Claim:
A method for preparing a population of water-dispersible nanoparticles, comprising: (a) admixing (i) an amphipathic dispersant comprised of a polymer having a hydrophobic backbone and a plurality of alkyl acrylamide side chains, wherein the alkyl group of each acrylamide side chain has more than four carbon atoms, (ii) a plurality of hydrophobic nanoparticles, wherein the nanoparticles are provided with a water-insoluble organic coating thereon, and (iii) a nonaqueous solvent, to provide an admixture of dispersant, discrete, hydrophobic nanoparticles, and solvent; (b) subjecting the admixture to conditions effective to cause adsorption of the dispersant onto the water-insoluble organic coating on each of the hydrophobic nanoparticles, thereby providing a plurality of discrete, dispersant-coated nanoparticles; and (c) transferring the plurality of dispersant-coated nanoparticles prepared in step (b) to an aqueous medium to provide a population of water-dispersible nanoparticles.