Poly(vinyl pyrrolidone):  A Dual Functional Reductant and Stabilizer for the Facile Synthesis of Noble Metal Nanoplates in Aqueous Solutions

Poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) has been extensively used in the solution-phase synthesis of many types of colloidal particles, where it is mainly considered as a steric stabilizer or capping agent with a major role to protect the product from agglomeration. In a recent study, we discovered that the hydroxyl end groups of PVP could also serve as a very mild reductant for kinetically controlled synthesis of Ag nanoplates with yields as high as 75%. Here we further demonstrate that hydroxyl-terminated PVP is also a well-suited reductant for the aqueous synthesis of circular, triangular, and hexagonal nanoplates made of other noble metals including Pd, Au, and Pt. The reduction kinetics of a metal salt by the…

• JS
  Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
• DO
  Division of Materials Research