Size Of Silver Particles Research Articles

Studying the optical properties of assembled silver and gold nanoparticles for the purpose of creating SERS sensors

The optical properties of silver and gold sols with different sizes of nanoparticles and the method of their chemical deposition on the surface of silicon, silicon oxide, glass and aluminum foil were studied in order to obtain SERS substrates – promising platforms for the development of aptamer sensors and immunochemical analysis of various pathogens. It has been established that for operation on lasers with exciting radiation wavelengths of 532, 638 and 785 nm, it is possible to create universal SERS substrates based on colloidal solutions obtained by the liquid-phase chemical method with an average silver particle size of 40 nm and by the Leopold-Lendl method with an average size of 20 nm.

Study on the influence factors of the grain growth type of micro-nano silver powders prepared by liquid-phase reduction method

Abstract The preparation was carried out by liquid-phase reduction method with AgNO3 as the oxidizing agent, ascorbic acid (C6H8O6) as the reducing agent, and polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVPK30) as the dispersing agent. The effects of silver nitrate concentration, ascorbic acid concentration, PVPK30 concentration, solution PH value before and after the reaction, and the temperature of reaction on average particle size (D50), dispersity, and particle size uniformity of silver particles were investigated by orthogonal experiment L18 (36) with six factors and three levels. The spheroid-like silver particles with good dispersity of 400-600nm and the spheroid-like silver particles with suitable particle size uniformity of 80-100nm were successfully prepared by optimal experiments. The results of the orthogonal experiment show that the molar ratio of the reducing agent to the oxidizing agent plays a decisive role in the type of grain growth. The crystal nucleus will coagulate and grow at a higher molar ratio (⩾1.05). With the increase in molar ratio, the nucleation rate is higher, the grain growth rate is faster, and the size of silver particles is smaller.

Effect of Spherical Silver Particles Size of the Catalyst Bed on Hydrogen Peroxide Monopropellant Thruster Performance

Effect of Spherical Silver Particles Size of the Catalyst Bed on Hydrogen Peroxide Monopropellant Thruster Performance

NMP limits silver particle size to solve deposited film breakup problems

Metal based electroreflective devices (MERDs) have gained wide attention in recent years in the fields of smart windows and automotive glass due to their excellent photo-thermal modulation capability in the visible and near-infrared wavelength bands due to their high reflectivity. However, the high porosity due to the island-like growth of silver particles makes the devices susceptible to electrodeposited film breakage during prolonged energization or bleaching. This will seriously affect the effectiveness and stability of the device. In this paper, it is shown that the problem of Ag electrodeposition film fragmentation can be effectively overcome by replacing dimethyl sulfoxide solvent by N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP). The optical constants during film deposition were tested by the spectroscopic ellipsometry technique, and the porosity was calculated (reduced by 21.6%). The results show that MERDs with NMP as the solvent have more and more dispersed silver deposition sites, which leads to lower porosity of the silver deposited film during the deposition process. In addition, the lower turn-on voltage, greater contrast, longer memory effect, and greater coloring efficiency reveal that they are more promising for energy-saving applications.

An innovative pretreatment protocol to eliminate silver contamination-induced voltammetric interference on graphite-glass working electrode

In the last decades, a significant amount of research has been focused on the development of miniaturized and portable electrochemical sensors in the form of screen-printed electrodes (SPEs). When performing voltammetric measurements using SPEs, especially in the case of carbon-based electrodes, additional peaks can appear and overlap with analytes’ signals or otherwise interfere with results. Therefore, the development of pretreatment methods that enable the removal of interferences is of great importance for SPEs utilization, e.g. for sensor applications. Moreover, electrode pretreatment can also be used to improve electron transfer kinetics, including reversibility of the studied redox processes. In this work, we present the evaluation of different pretreatment methods using cyclic voltammetry and potentiostatic anodization, applied on an in-house graphite-glass composite working electrodes. With the use of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy it was confirmed that the surface of working electrode was contaminated by sub-micrometer sized silver particles, which resulted in two interference peaks. Several strong acids, including H2SO4, HNO3, and HCl, as well as phosphate buffer solution, were evaluated as electrolytes for electrochemical pretreatment. A rapid, simple, and low-cost pretreatment protocol that enables the removal of the interference peaks, as well as improved voltammetric signals for [Fe(CN)6]3−/4− redox probe was developed. We propose the optimal pretreatment method in H2SO4 as a protocol that could be universally applied for carbon, carbon-glass, or similar types of SPEs before performing voltammetric experiments and/or further modifications of SPEs.

Preparation and anti-oxidisation resistance of silver-coated copper powders by cobalt-modified copper powders

Spherical copper powders and cobalt-modified copper powders were electroless plated with silver, respectively, to obtain two kinds of silver-plated copper powders. The composite powders were analysed by X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and thermogravimetric-differential scanning calorimetry. Effects of cobalt modification on surface morphology, silver reduction rate, particle size and anti-oxidisation resistance of composite powders were studied. The results indicate that surface morphology of silver-coated copper powders prepared by cobalt-modified copper powders was affected by cobalt, but the size, mass and the percent reduction of silver were significantly increased under the same conditions of electroless plating silver. And silver-coated copper powders prepared by cobalt-modified copper powders have better anti-oxidisation resistance than silver-coated copper powders prepared by copper powders.

Effect of Dropping Speed of Reducing Agent on the Preparation of LA/Ag Phase-Change Nanocapsules

Lauric Acid (LA) phase-change nanocapsules prepared with silver as the shell exhibit excellent energy storage capacity and high thermal conductivity. Still, their functionality could be improved by ensuring uniform morphologies, even the size and thickness of silver particles. In this study, the LA/Ag nanocapsules were prepared under different reductant drop speeds. By adjusting the droplet speed of the reducing agent, the concentration of silver in the solution can be controlled, which affects the nucleation and growth rate of silver particles, thereby influencing the deposition of silver particles on the surface of the core material. The characterization results indicate the successful preparation of high sphericity and uniform-sized LA/Ag nanocapsules. The average diameter of capsules was 117–140 nm, the latent heat was 43.69–47.78 J/g, and the encapsulation efficiency was 80.69–82.53%. As the droplet speed increased, the thickness of the silver shell increased while the encapsulation efficiency decreased. The highest encapsulation efficiency was achieved when the reducing agent dropping speed was 0.03 mL/s.

The effects of silver particle size on bacterioplankton community and potential function in aquatic environment

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), known for their antimicrobial properties, are increasingly being recognized as a water pollutant, with their physicochemical properties varying based on particle size. However, there is a lack of research on whether presence of AgNPs and their particle size affect bacterial communities in water bodies. In this study, the water from Chaohu Lake was collected and spiked with AgNPS of different particle sizes of (5 nm, 50 nm, and 100 nm) to stimulate the microbial response. Our findings revealed that the presence of AgNPs could significantly disrupt bacterial community structure and strengthen the associations between certain bacteria, with significant impacts observed on nitrifying and denitrifying processes. Different particle sizes of AgNPs had various effects on bacterial community structure, with small-sized AgNPs affecting the bacterial community the most. Moreover, the presence of AgNPs and their varying particle sizes were observed to significantly affect the nitrogen cycle, carbon cycle, and respiration, thus imposing significant impacts on other ecological functions of aquatic ecosystems. This study provides a baseline study on the aquatic ecotoxicological effects of AgNPs.

Structure and Microchannel Catalytic Bed Performance of Silver Thin Films Prepared by Electroplating

The morphology of catalysts in microchannels plays a crucial role in the orbital maneuvering and networking applications of micro/nano satellites using hydrogen peroxide as a unit propellant. In this paper, a microfluidic reaction chip was designed and fabricated to detect the reaction rate of the catalytic decomposition of hydrogen peroxide solution by a microchannel catalytic bed. In addition, a silver thin film prepared by constant-current electroplating was used as a substrate for the microchannel catalyst. The results show that the ratio of surface area to area of silver film and the average particle size of silver particles have a significant positive correlation on the reaction rate of catalytic decomposition, while the thickness, silver content, and surface roughness of the silver film have no significant effect on the reaction rate of catalytic decomposition. The catalytic performance of the microchannel catalytic bed of silver thin film is greatly influenced by the conditions of electroplating, namely, the electroplating temperature (T), time (t), and current (I). And when I = 0.3 mA, t = 180 s, and T = 60 °C, the microchannel catalytic bed of the silver film prepared by electroplating reaches the optimal reaction rate for the catalytic decomposition of hydrogen peroxide solution. This study has the best process parameters for the design and optimization of heterogeneous catalysts applied to microfluidic reactors.

Tailoring Morphology and Size of Silver Nanoparticles Prepared by Polyol Method by Changing the Structure of Silver Carboxylate Precursor

AbstractSilver nanoparticles are synthesized by reducing silver alkyl carboxylates at their high concentrations with ethylene and propylene glycol without a common use of polymeric dispersants and stabilizers. The effects of alkyl chain structure on the morphology and size of silver particles have been studied by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, powder X‐ray diffraction, differential scanning calorimetry, and thermogravimetric analyses. The carboxylates that have been investigated are silver caprylate, laurate, 2‐butyloctanoate, and 2‐ethylhexanoate. It was found that the reduction temperature of straight‐chain alkyl carboxylates is in the 110–120 °C range. The particles prepared under these conditions are perfectly spherical in shape and their average size varies from 20 to 40 nm. In the case of the branched structure, the reduction process starts at around 80 °C and produces irregularly shaped silver particles with a size of 150 to 450 nm. Possible ways of controlling the parameters of the synthesized nanoparticles are proposed. This study proposes a simple and easily scalable method to prepare silver nanoparticles stabilized by a non‐polymeric stabilizer. The as‐synthesized silver particles may have applications as metallic fillers in ink and paste formulations for 2D and 3D printing to fabricate functional components and devices.

Influence of silver doping on pro-inflammatory and pro-fibrogenic effects of nano-titanium dioxide in murine lung.

Silver is usually loaded on nano-titanium dioxide (TiO2 ) through photodeposition method to enhance visible-light catalytic functions for environment purification. However, little is known about how the toxicity changes after silver doping and how the physicochemical properties of loaded components affect nanocomposite toxicity. In this study, Ag-TiO2 with different sizes and contents of silver particles were obtained by controlling photodeposition time (PDT) and silver addition amount. Pro-inflammatory and pro-fibrogenic responses of these photocatalysts were evaluated in male C57BL/6J murine lung. As a result, silver was well assembled on TiO2 , promoting visible-light catalytic activity. Notably, the size of silver particles increased with PDT. Meanwhile, toxicity results showed that pure TiO2 (P25) mainly caused neutrophil infiltration, while 2 wt/wt% silver-loaded TiO2 recruited more types of inflammatory cells in the lung. Both of them caused the increase of proinflammatory cytokines while decreasing the anti-inflammatory cytokine in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. However, 2 wt/wt% silver doping also accelerated the lung pro-fibrogenic response of photocatalysts in the subacute phase from evidence of collagen deposition and hydroxyproline concentrations. Mechanistically, the overactivation of TGFBR2 receptors in TGF-β/smads pathways by silver-loaded TiO2 rather than pure TiO2 may be the reason why silver-loaded TiO2 can promote pro-fibrogenic effect response. Intriguingly, the increased toxicity caused by silver doping can be rescued by increasing the size of the loaded silver or decreasing the silver amount. These results may be important for the new understanding of the toxicity of TiO2 -based photocatalysts.

Influence of Ag particle size and Ag : Al2O3 surface ratio in catalysts for the chloride-promoted ethylene epoxidation

Ethylene epoxidation is catalyzed by α-alumina supported silver catalysts. The influence of silver particle size has been a topic of debate, and was typically investigated without the industrially essential chloride promoter. We studied the catalyst behavior in the presence of chloride. Transient behavior was observed in the first tens of hours on stream, not as a result of particle growth, but due to the gradual change in the nature of the active silver site in the presence of chloride. Different strategies were used to tune the particle size: either varying the silver loading or varying the decomposition atmosphere. Increasing the particle size from 13 to 50 nm by changing the Ag loading from 2 to 15 wt% increased the selectivity from 35 to 80%. However, increasing the 15 wt% Ag particle size from 48 to 184 nm by varying the heat treatment led to a decrease in selectivity from 80 to 50%. Changing the Ag particle size with both strategies also changes the Ag : Al2O3 surface ratio. The ethylene oxide selectivity is actually correlated to the Ag : Al2O3 surface ratio, rather than to the particle size in this size range. This can be explained by its influence on the probability of a formed ethylene oxide molecule to subsequently further react over support surface groups.

Surfactant mediated silver synthesis: Influence of surfactant molecular structure on the size and shape of silver particles

The current work employs non-ionic surfactants polyethylene glycol tert-octylphenyl ether (Triton X-114) and polyoxyethylene (20) sorbitan monolaurate (Tween 20) as capping agents for synthesizing silver particles. Formation of icosahedrons and Wulff polyhedrons are thermodynamically preferable for FCC silver, and anisotropic morphologies such as triangular/hexagonal platelets are less likely. Yet, with the use of Triton X-114, appreciable quantity of platelets is obtained. Beyond the molar ratio of 2.5 (Triton X-114: AgNO3), only anisotropic particles are identified. It is believed that preferential adsorption of the surfactant inhibits crystal growth along 〈111〉 direction. Instead, the particles grow along the edges of the hexagonal/triangular plates. In contrast, the use of Tween 20 yielded silver (nano)particles with spherical shape. The presence of multiple polymeric chains in the Tween 20 molecule exhibits strong interaction with the silver particles by restricting growth along multiple facets. These observations indicate the significant role of the molecular structure of capping agents in determining particle size and morphology.

A sonochemical approach for a silver particle layer SERS substrates preparation and subsequent application in qualitative analysis

We present an easy and efficient method for silver particle layer SERS substrate preparation that combines a modified Tollens’ approach with using ultrasound to obtain unique reaction conditions by generating high-energy hot-spots as the arising acoustic cavities implode. The silver layers were deposited on various substrates in a one-step reduction process of silver nitrate. Three different reductants (maltose, glucose, ascorbic acid) were used to obtain silver particle layers with different particle sizes, morphologies, and inter-particle distances. To further optimize the properties of the silver particles for SERS and to provide higher signal enhancement, all the prepared nanoparticle layers were activated in 4 M Cl− solution. The size of silver particles was in most samples under 100 nm and the particles formed clusters, but they were also present on the surface individually. In some of the activated substrates, bigger particles (0.5–1 μm) occur as well. The activated as well as non-activated substrates were tested as SERS substrates using 10−5 M adenine as a model analyte. Laser wavelengths of 455 nm, 532 nm, 633 nm, 780 nm, and 785 nm were used for the SERS measurements. High enhancement factors up to 3.5·105 and 2.8·105 were obtained for SERS measurements using lasers of 532 nm and 780 nm, respectively.

Silver zirconium oxide cermet coatings spray deposited onto galvanized steel sheet for low temperature solar applications

A new type of cermet coating, with potential use as low-cost solar thermal absorber has been developed using spray pyrolysis. It consists of crystalline silver nanoparticles embedded in amorphous zirconia and was obtained by spraying aqueous precursor solutions onto aluminized carbon steel sheets at 200 °C. It was found that simultaneous spraying of silver and zirconium solutions led to a considerable reduction, in the nanometer range, of silver particle size distribution. Hence, we comparatively studied the cermet coatings obtained by A) sequentially or B) simultaneously spraying silver and zirconium solutions. For the latter case, a zirconia anti-reflection layer was sprayed on top. Both coating systems were studied by SEM, AFM, HRTEM/EDS and UV-VIS-IR spectroscopy with respect to silver particle size distribution. Optical parameters like solar absorptance (AM 1.5) and thermal emittance (373 K) were determined from absolute hemispherical reflectance, and a performance coefficient was calculated in order to evaluate the solar selectivity of the coatings. The comparison showed that smaller silver particles lead to an increase in solar selectivity and that the size reduction is due to an effective encapsulation by zirconia of the silver particles when spraying silver and zirconium precursors simultaneously. Furthermore, HRTEM confirmed the metallic and crystalline state of the silver nanoparticles embedded in amorphous zirconia.

Ag/TiO2 nanohybrids induce fibrosis-related epithelial-mesenchymal transition in lung epithelial cells and the influences of silver content and silver particle size

The controlled synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) decorated TiO2 nanohybrids (Ag/TiO2) for photocatalysis has received considerable attention. These photocatalysts are widely used in environment and energy, resulting in human exposure through inhalation. Pure TiO2 is generally considered a low-toxic nanomaterial. However, little is known about the toxicity after AgNPs loading. In this study, silver-decorated TiO2 nanohybrids were controllably synthesized by the photodeposition method, and their toxic effects on murine lung and human lung epithelial cells were explored. As a result, silver loading significantly enhanced the effect of TiO2 photocatalyst on EMT in lung epithelial cells, potentially acting as a pro-fibrogenic effect in murine lung. Meanwhile, the increase in autophagy vacuoles, LC3-II marker, stub-RFP-sens-GFP-LC3 fluorescence assay, and LC3 turnover assay showed that silver loading also significantly increased autophagy flux. Furthermore, analysis of autophagy inhibition by 3-Methyladenine indicated that the promotion of EMT by silver loading was related to the increased autophagy flux. Intriguingly, the autophagy and EMT biological effects could be alleviated when the silver loading amount was reduced or silver particle size was increased, and the enhanced pro-fibrogenic effect was mitigated at the same time. This study supplemented safety information of Ag-decorated TiO2 nanohybrids and provided methods of controlled synthesis for reducing toxicity.

Extraction and Phytochemical Profile of Three Herbal Weeds: Chromolaena odorata L., Amaranthys virdis L., and Cyperus Rotudus L. for Green Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles

Phytochemical screening and silver nanoparticle synthesis of extract of 3 local weeds from Sakon Nakhon Province, namely, Chromolaena odorata L., Amaranthus virdis L., and Cyperus Rotudus L., were carried out. The preliminary testing of chemical constituents revealed secondary metabolites with pharmacological activity. The weed extracts possessed bioactive compounds and were potent for silver nanoparticle synthesis. The weed extracts demonstrated a lower inhibition percentage (DPPH inhibition) than ascorbic acid, with significant differences at p<0.05. Reducing agent analysis revealed that the weed extracts contained reducing compounds such as phenol and carboxylic acid suitable for AgNPs. The XRD patterns of silver nanoparticles synthesized from the extracts demonstrated the efficacy of the weed extract for medical applications (the production of AgNPs). In the future, the size and morphology of silver particles should be investigated. The current results are expected to be a guideline for further applications of local weeds.

Comparison of antibacterial activity and cytotoxicity of silver nanoparticles and silver-loaded montmorillonite and saponite

Although silver nanoparticles are known for their antibacterial activity, little research has been carried out on what synthesis method provides the most effective particles. In this study, silver nanoparticles were synthesised via chemical reduction by using silver nitrate as the silver precursor, ascorbic acid as the reducing agent and sodium citrate as the stabilising agent. The solutions were adjusted to several pH values employing sodium hydroxide, citric acid or nitric acid. Dynamic light scattering and absorption spectra in the ultraviolet/visible region characterisation revealed that employing nitric acid to adjust the pH produced more varied and larger silver particle sizes. Then, silver nanoparticles were supported on montmorillonite and saponite through wet impregnation or ion exchange methods. Scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy characterisation confirmed that silver nanoparticles were successfully loaded onto the clay minerals. Next, the antibacterial activity of the samples was evaluated against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus by determining their minimum inhibitory concentrations and minimum bactericidal concentrations. The free silver nanoparticles did not show any antibacterial activity at 125 mg/L. In contrast, the silver-loaded samples obtained by wet impregnation and with a higher silver content displayed the strongest antibacterial effect. Finally, the cytotoxicity of the samples was determined in GM07492-A cell line by using an XTT colorimetric assay. The calculated IC50 values revealed that the supported silver nanoparticles were barely toxic. Thus, the silver-loaded clay minerals obtained here are promising antibacterial materials with a high-grade safety profile.

Biosynthesis of Silver Nano/Micro-Particles Using <i>Sambiloto</i> (<i>Andrographis paniculata</i>) Leaves Extract: Effect of AgNO<sub>3</sub> Solution Concentrations

Silver nano/micro particles have been successfully produced via biosynthesis using sambiloto (Andrographis paniculata) leaves extract as the reductor agent. The obejctive of current was to study the effect of four different AgNO3 solution concentrations (i.e. 0.0125, 0.025, 0.05, 0.075 M) on the production of silver nano/micro particles via biosynthtesis. The sambiloto extract concentration used in this study was 0.5% w/v. The silver nano/micro particles produced via biosynthesis was characterized using UV-Vis spectrophotometer and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The UV-Vis analysis results showed that absorbance peaks for all four samples were observed at wavelength around 450 nm, which can be attributed to the presence silver nano/microparticles. The absorbance peak values for all samples were 0.1115; 0.0876; 0.052; 0.0424 for AgNO3 solution concentration of 0.0125; 0.025; 0.05; 0.075 M, respectively. The UV-Vis analysis results could also qualitatively conclude that the size of silver nano/micro particles produced at lower AgNO3 solution concentration were smaller than the size of silver nano/micro particles produced at higher AgNO3 solution concentration. In the other hand, SEM image showed that the size of silver particles prepared using AgNO3 solution concentration of 0.075 M was in the range of 5 – 10 μm, hence it can be called silver micro-particles. It was assumed that the size of silver nano/micro particles produced at higher AgNO3 solution concentration were bigger than the size of silver nano/micro particles produced at lower AgNO3 solution concentration.

In situ Raman spectroscopy study of silver particle size effects on unpromoted Ag/α-Al2O3 during ethylene epoxidation with molecular oxygen

In situ Raman spectroscopy and parallel fixed bed reactor studies were conducted under ethylene epoxidation conditions with O2 at 1 atm and 200 ℃ on unpromoted Ag/α-Al2O3 catalysts with different Ag particle sizes. It was found that for Ag particles of 20–50 nm, the weight normalized conversion rate decreased rapidly with increasing Ag particle size but remained almost constant above 50 nm. On the other hand, the apparent TOF increased with increasing Ag particle sizes in the 20–170 nm studied range, while ethylene oxide selectivity at zero residence time was nearly constant (55 ± 4%). Raman bands at 815 (all Ag sizes) and 880 (Ag sizes > 100 nm) cm−1 were identified and assigned to active molecular oxygen species. The 880 cm−1 species was assigned to a molecular oxygen complex structure stabilized by subsurface oxygen. The presence of the 880 cm−1 oxygen species likely explain the higher apparent TOF in larger Ag particles (>100 nm).