The Effect of pH on the Size of Silver Nanoparticles Obtained in the Reduction Reaction with Citric and Malic Acids

In colloidal methods, the morphology of nanoparticles (size and shape) as well as their stability can be controlled by changing the concentration of the substrate, stabilizer, adding inorganic salts, changing the reducer/substrate molar ratio, and changing the pH and reaction time. The synthesis of silver nanoparticles was carried out according to the modified Lee and Meisel method in a wide pH range (from 2.0 to 11.0) using citric acid and malic acid, without adding any additives or stabilizers. Keeping the same reaction conditions as the concentration of acid and silver ions, temperature, and heating time, it was possible to determine the relationship between the reaction pH, the type of acid, and the size of the silver nanoparticles formed. Obtained colloids were analyzed by UV-Vis spectroscopy and investigated by means of Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM). The study showed that the colloids reduced with citric acid and malic acid are stable over time for a minimum of seven weeks. We observed that reactions occurred for citric acid from pH 6.0 to 11.0 and for malic acid from pH 7.0 to 11.0. The average size of the quasi-spherical nanoparticles changed with pH due to the increase of reaction rate.