Synthesis of gold nanoparticles by tetrachloroaurate reduction with cyclodextrins

Abstract

One-step synthesis of gold nanoparticles functionalized with α-, β- and γ-cyclodextrins was carried out using a synthetic method of direct tetrachloroaurate reduction in alkaline solutions. The two experimental conditions studied were direct heating and microwave irradiation. This is the first publication comparing the characteristics of gold nanoparticles produced using three cyclodextrins under different conditions. The resulting nanoparticles were characterized by absorbance spectra, FTIR spectra, dynamic light scattering data and transmission electron microscopy images. The reducing ability of cyclodextrins increased in the following order: β-cyclodextrin < α-cyclodextrin < γ-cyclodextrin. Therefore, γ-cyclodextrin was the most active reductant and the only cyclodextrin that was able to reduce tetrachloroaurate at room temperature. In this case, nanoparticles were observed only after 4 days of storage. The nanoparticle size was dependent on the cyclodextrin type and correlated with the difference in the reducing ability. Using microwave irradiation, most of nanoparticles were found to be free nanoparticles. Using direct heating, aggregates formed due to the high ionic strength of the solution after prolonged boiling. Therefore, nanoparticles synthesized by direct heating were less stable during storage than those synthesized by microwave irradiation.