Synthesis of Copper-Silver Bicomponent Nanoparticles in the Presence of Nitrilotrimethylenephosphonic Acid

Abstract

Synthesis of stable mixed nanoparticles (SMNs) by chemical co-reduction of copper and silver complexonates with sodium borohydride in an open system with the access of air oxygen was studied for the first time the. Variation of the Cu²⁺ to Ag⁺ molar ratio within 1: (0.05–0.5) enabled targeted formation of differently structured nanoparticles (core-shell type), Cu_coreAg_shell and Ag_coreCu_shell. It was found that, by choosing appropriate synthesis conditions, it is possible to produce oxidation-resistant copper particles protected by a shell of a precious metal or to involve the copper complex of nitrilotrimethylenephosphonic acid in silver reduction. The resulting SMNs may become widely used for obtaining various functional materials.