Preparation of silver nanoparticles and antibiotic test of its polycarbonate films composite

General synthetic methods for silver nanoparticles are reduction of metal salt in aqueous solution or alcoholic solution. However, the preparation of silver nanoparticles in organic solvent is rarely reported. The most common preparation methods for silver nanoparticles in organic solvent are based on transfer of nanoparticles from aqueous phase to organic phase by phase transfer agent. We describe an easy synthetic method to prepare dispersed silver nanoparticles (approximately 10 nm) by reduction of silver cation in organic solvent such as toluene using a reducing agent and a capping agent. The synthesized silver nanoparticles and polycarbonate were mixed and molded to prepare a new composite in methylene chloride. The composite was tested to investigate antifungal effect by coliform (Escherichia coil ATCC 25922). The antifungal effect of the composite reached high after 24 h (99.9999%). The composite and the silver nanoparticles have been characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-vis spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and inductively coupled plasma (ICP).