In order to introduce students to research in nanomaterials, we have developed a project which involves the kinetics of silver nanoparticle aggregation. This has been a topic of study in our research lab for some years. The nanoparticles are created with citrate ions adsorbed to their surface. Then, an added compound, such as histidine, may exchange with the citrate ions, lower the coulomb repulsion between nanoparticles and thus induce aggregation. The experimental methods and analysis have proven to be ideally suited for undergraduate students in our lab and as a research-type project for our advanced physical chemistry laboratory course. Over the years, we have developed a synthetic method that is reliable and produces consistent kinetic results. The lab-course project can be done in three 3-hour lab periods. The students first learn how to synthesize silver nanoparticles and conduct an established kinetics experiment in which the strong resonance peak of the nanoparticles is monitored by UV-Visible spectroscopy. Then, after analyzing their results and comparing with previous results, they design their own experiments with the objective of learning more about the mechanism of aggregation. The students seem to enjoy this lab more than other experiments which are entirely planned for them.

Project for the advanced physical chemistry lab: Kinetics of silver nanoparticle aggregation

2019 Fall National Meeting

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