Synthesis, characterization and kinetics of formation of silver nanoparticles by reduction with adrenaline in the micellar media.

The present paper describes about the easy, simple and convenient procedure for the synthesis of silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) in aqueous solutions by the reduction of silver nitrate with adrenaline. The surfactant molecules of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTABr) and sodium dodecyl ate (SDS) behaved differently during the reduction of Ag(+) ions by adrenaline. The obtained data suggest that the variation of [CTABr] gave a maxima-like curve for rate constant versus [CTABr], while, the values of rate constant decreased with the increase in [SDS]. The addition of surfactant molecules stabilized the Ag-NPs. The UV-Visible spectra were analyzed to deduce the particle size. The calculated sizes of the nanoparticles were further compared by the TEM images. The XRD spectrum confirmed the crystalline nature of silver nanoparticles having the face-centered cubic crystal structure. The edge length of unit cell was found 4.076 Å. The kinetics of formation of Ag-NPs was performed at different concentrations of adrenaline, AgNO3, NaOH and [surfactant]. The values of rate constant were independent on [adrenaline] and [AgNO3]. The increase in [NaOH] increased the rate of agglomeration of silver particles to form Ag-NPs. A linear relationship was obtained for the plot of rate constant versus [NaOH].