Investigation of Parameters Effect on the Size and Morphology of Copper Nanoparticles using Various Reducing Agents

Copper nanoparticles are widely used in various industries and products. Size and morphology are two important parameters to determine nanoparticle properties. In this study, copper nanoparticles were synthesized without an inert environment using two different reducing agents namely ascorbic acid and sodium hypophosphite. Various capping agents (PVP 105, PVP 4×104, PEG 6000, SDS, CTAB and glycerol) were used as stabilizers. Effect of several parameters including reducing agent concentration, type and amount of stabilizer and precursor concentration on the size and stability of the resulting nanoparticles have been investigated. The synthesis experiments resulted in a 25-60 nm average size of nanoparticles based on the synthesis conditions and the stabilizer type and concentration. Also this research provides a fast and simple way for the synthesis of stable pure colloidal copper nanoparticles in polyol, which is accomplished by decreasing CuSO4.5H2O using sodium hypophosphite in glycerol and without inert medium and homogeneous and non-agglomerated, 25 nm copper nanoparticles were obtained. The as synthesized copper nanoparticles are characterized using scanning and transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and dynamic light scattering techniques.