Abstract
A new and simple method for preparing confined copper and nickel nanoparticles by thermal treatment of their respective cations inside Mobil Composition of Matter 41 (MCM–41) hydrophobic nanopores is presented here. Surface modified MCM–41 hydrophobic materials were impregnated by using high-pressure treatment with copper II (Cu II) or nickel II (Ni II) aqueous solutions. After pressure release and washing, the remaining metal cations, confined exclusively within the nanopores, were heated, forming metallic nanoparticles. Reduction of the cations by a redox reaction between the hydrophobic organic surface and the confined metal cations is proposed. Transmission electronic microscopy (TEM), selected area electron diffraction (SAED), nitrogen (N2) adsorption at −196 °C (77 K), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and thermogravimetric (TGA) analyses evidenced the identification of copper and nickel nanoparticles (NPs).
Highlights
The use of nanoparticles in our everyday life is not a new phenomenon
We developed and described a new method for synthesizing copper and nickel nanoparticles (NPs) confined in hydrophobic nanopores in situ using only thermal treatment without the use of chemical reducing agents
The NPs were homogeneously dispersed within the hydrophobic materials because of the use of a specific high-pressure confinement method for copper II (Cu II) and nickel II (Ni II) metal cations
Summary
The use of nanoparticles in our everyday life is not a new phenomenon. Precious metal nanoparticles were used even in ancient times in varnishes or other types of coatings, for example, to enhance the colouring and beauty of ceramics [1]. The potential uses of nanoparticles as sensors [2], as catalysts [3], for environmental clean-up [4,5], as doping agents for hydrogen storage by adsorption [6], in biological and nanotechnological fields [7] and in medicine for cancer activity [8], to name a few examples, have greatly amplified their importance These metal nanoparticles (NPs) of nanometric size exhibit enhanced thermal, optical, chemical and physical properties compared to their bulk metal counter parts [9] and, for these reasons, have become a target base in both the research and industrial communities. If the binding is too strong, the reactivity towards adsorbates is not expected to be high, yet, if the binding is too weak, the rate of sintering is expected to increase
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