Synthesis of silver nanoparticles templated by TEMPO-mediated oxidized bacterial cellulose nanofibers.

We have prepared silver nanoparticles on the surface of bacterial cellulose (BC) nanofibers. The synthesis of silver nanoparticles incorporates 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyradical (TEMPO)-mediated oxidation to introduce carboxylate groups on the surface of BC nanofibers. An ion exchange of the sodium to the silver salt was performed in AgNO(3) solution, followed by thermal reduction. By using oxidized BC nanofibers as a reaction template, we have prepared stable silver nanoparticles with a narrow size distribution and high density through strong ion interactions between host carboxylate groups and guest silver cations, which have been investigated by scanning electron microscopy, UV-visible spectroscopy, and a small-angle X-ray scattering method.