http://www.mdpi.com/journal/materials/special_issues/supercritical-fluids/ Dear Colleagues, This special issue is intended to give an overview of supercritical fluid (SCF) applications in materials science. A supercritical fluid is any substance at a temperature and pressure above its critical point. It shows a gas-like diffusivity and a liquid-like density; therefore, it can substitute organic solvents in a wide range of processes. Carbon dioxide and water are the most commonly used supercritical fluids. Several processes using supercritical fluids have been proposed and, in some cases, applied to industrial scale, like, for example: Supercritical extraction and fractionation for food and pharmaceutical products Micro and nanoparticles (single or composite) production in pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, cosmetic and biomedical fields Micro and nanoemulsions Polymer applications like membranes, foams and scaffolds production or polymers synthesis, modification and recycling Reactions in supercritical media Inorganic or organic aerogels impregnation Nanostructured inorganic and metallic materials processing for catalysis, electronics and optics We expect contributions to this special issue prevalently in these areas with the aim to set the state of the art and to promote research and industrial development in this field. Iolanda De Marco, Ph. D. Prof. Dr. Ernesto Reverchon Guest Editors Submission All manuscripts should be submitted to materials@mdpi.com with a copy to the Guest Editor. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. Papers will be published continuously (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website. Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are refereed through a peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Materials is an international peer-reviewed Open Access monthly journal published by MDPI. Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this Open Access journal is 800 CHF per accepted paper. http://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/3/7/3794/ This paper summarizes specific features of supercritical hydrothermal synthesis of metal oxide particles. Supercritical water allows control of the crystal phase, morphology, and particle size since the solvent\'s properties, such as density of water, can be varied with temperature and pressure, both of which can affect the supersaturation and nucleation. In this review, we describe the advantages of fine particle formation using supercritical water and describe which future tasks need to be solved. http://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/3/7/3794/ Fri, 25 Jun 2010 00:00:00 CEST Materials 2010-06-25 3 7 Review 3794 3817 1996-1944 Hydrothermal Synthesis of Metal Oxide Nanoparticles in Supercritical Water 2010-06-25 doi: 10.3390/ma3073794 Hayashi Hakuta http://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/3/5/3188/ Dense CO2 can be used as an environmentally-benign polymer processing medium because of its liquid-like densities and gas-like mass transfer properties.In this work, polymer bio-blends of polycarbonate (PC), a biocompatible polymer, and polycaprolactone (PCL), a biodegradable polymer were prepared. Dense CO2 was used as a reaction medium for the melt-phase PC polymerization in the presence of dense CO2-swollen PCL particles and this method was used to prepare porous PC/PCL blends. To extend the applicability of dense CO2 to the biomedical industry and polymer blend processing, the impregnation of ibuprofen into the blend was conducted and subsequent dissolution characteristics were observed. http://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/3/5/3188/ Tue, 11 May 2010 00:00:00 CEST Materials 2010-05-11 3 5 Article 3188 3203 1996-1944 A Green Method for Processing Polymers using Dense Gas Technology 2010-05-11 doi: 10.3390/ma3053188 Yoganathan Mammucari Foster