The extracted, by freeze-drying or vacuuming, components of plant
material, microbial preparations or tissue homogenates are very hygroscopic and
easily absorb considerable amounts of water being in contact with atmospheric
air. An effective way for their stabilization is to generate composite systems
with nanosilica. As the bio-preparations in the air can be subjected to bacterial
and fungal contamination, nanosilica, linking a large number of microbial
bodies, is able to prevent their degradation, increasing the duration of the
storage. A promising way case is to find such nanomaterials that reduce the
amount of water absorbed by the biological component of the composite
material. As a physical basis can serve the transfer of the biological component
into nano-sized state where there is no formed bulk organic phase. Within the
nanostructured mineral matrix, at a certain ratio of the concentrations of
biological and mineral components, the islands of biological component with a
size comparable to the one of the interparticle empty spaces of silica, can be
formed. Since the solubility of water in the nanoscale biosystems may differ
significantly from the bulk one, this effect may be used to reduce their
hygroscopicity. The aim of this paper has been to investigate the effect of
hydrophilic and hydrophobic nanosilica on the processes of freezing and
evaporation of water, linked to the preparation ―Enoxil‖, and obtained by
extraction and chemical treatment of biologically active substances from the
grape seed. By low-temperature 1Н NMR spectroscopy and thermogravimetry
methods, the effect of hydrophobic (AM1) and hydrophilic (A-300) nanosilica
on the process of evaporation and freezing water, linked to hygroscopic grape
seed extract, bio-preparation Enoxil (Ex) has been studied. It is shown that
nanosilica modifies the character of binding water in composite systems. The
total amount of water retained in the composite becomes substantially smaller
than in pure bio-preparation. It varies in the series Ex> Ex/A-300> Ex/(A-300 +
AM1)>Ex/AM1, which is reflected in values of the water absorbed mass, as well
as in the values of interfacial energy, concentration of strongly bonded water
and the cluster size of the adsorbed water. It is suggested that the observed effect
is due to formation of the nanoparticles of bio-preparation, in which the water
solubility is substantially less than in the bulk of Ex. This effect can be used to
stabilize lyophilized biological tissues and cell cultures.