Volume 30, Issue 18 pp. 1564-1569
Communication

Reactive Hydrogel Networks for the Fabrication of Metal–Polymer Nanocomposites

Ihor Tarnavchyk

Ihor Tarnavchyk

Department of Organic Chemistry, Lviv Polytechnic National University, 79013 Lviv, Ukraine

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Andriy Voronov

Corresponding Author

Andriy Voronov

Coatings and Polymeric Materials, North Dakota State University, Dep. 2760, PO Box 6050 Fargo, ND, 58108-6050 USA

Coatings and Polymeric Materials, North Dakota State University, Dep. 2760, PO Box 6050 Fargo, ND, 58108-6050 USA. Fax: +1 701 231 8439Search for more papers by this author
Ananiy Kohut

Ananiy Kohut

Coatings and Polymeric Materials, North Dakota State University, Dep. 2760, PO Box 6050 Fargo, ND, 58108-6050 USA

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Nataliya Nosova

Nataliya Nosova

Department of Organic Chemistry, Lviv Polytechnic National University, 79013 Lviv, Ukraine

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Serhiy Varvarenko

Serhiy Varvarenko

Department of Organic Chemistry, Lviv Polytechnic National University, 79013 Lviv, Ukraine

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Volodymyr Samaryk

Volodymyr Samaryk

Department of Organic Chemistry, Lviv Polytechnic National University, 79013 Lviv, Ukraine

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Stanislav Voronov

Stanislav Voronov

Department of Organic Chemistry, Lviv Polytechnic National University, 79013 Lviv, Ukraine

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First published: 09 September 2009
Citations: 22

Abstract

In this study, highly stable gold and silver nanoparticles evenly distributed within a crosslinked poly(acrylamide)/poly(N-(hydroxymethyl)acrylamide) (PAAm-PHMAAm) network have been fabricated without addition of a reducing agent. Remarkably, the same chemical hydrogel composition has been involved in the successful fabrication of spherical gold and silver nanoparticles within the hydrogel template. The hydrogel network acts simultaneously as an efficient reducing agent and stabilizer. The PAAm–PHMAAm hydrogel network binds metal ions and, following reduction of bound to crosslinked template metal ions, proceeds via oxidation of hydroxymethyl hydrogel fragments. A one-electron mechanism is proposed for the formation of the silver and gold nanoparticles.

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