Synthesis and mechanistic study of stable water-soluble noble metal nanostructures

Sodium salt of poly(4-styrenesulfonic acid-co-maleic acid) (PSSMA) has been employed to prepare a series of stable nanosized metal colloids such as silver, gold, palladium, platinum, and silver-gold alloy nanostructures. All of the as-synthesized products are very stable in water. The metal nanostructures have been directly confirmed by ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high-resolution TEM, and selected area electron diffraction (SAED), and also characterized by techniques such as Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and (1)H NMR. Intensive study has found that the metal ions are most probably reduced by organic radicals, generated from the thermal degradation of PSSMA.