Role of stabilizing agents in the formation of stable silver nanoparticles in aqueous solution: Characterization and stability study

The stability of silver nanoparticles is controlled mainly by two major factors, namely, aggregation and oxidation. In the present study, silver nanoparticles were synthesized by using different series of reducing agents like a strong reducing agent (sodium borohydride), a mild reducing agent (tri-sodium citrate), and a weak reducing agent (glucose) with different capping agents, namely, polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP K 30), starch, and sodium carboxyl methyl cellulose (NaCMC). The synthesized silver nanoparticles were characterized by UV-Visible absorption spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering (DLS), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and anti-microbial activity. The particle size of silver nanoparticles varies in the following order: sodium borohydride < tri-sodium citrate < glucose. Combination of sodium borohydride–polyvinyl pyrrolidone and tri-sodium citrate-polyvinyl pyrrolidone yields stable silver nanoparticles compared to other combinations of reducing agents and capping agents. The stability results confirmed that a refrigerated condition (8°C) was more suitable for storage of silver nanoparticles. Anti-microbial activity of silver nanoparticles synthesized in a sodium borohydride–polyvinyl pyrrolidone mixture shows a larger zone of inhibition compared to other silver nanoparticles. Anti-microbial results confirmed that the anti-microbial activity is better with smaller particle size. The size and stability of silver nanoparticles in the presence of different combinations of stabilizing and capping agents are reported.