Abstract
Nanoparticle technology is witnessing increasing interest due to its broad applications in medicine, pharmacology, the environment, and energy. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are among the most studied nanomaterials due to their unique properties, such as nanoscale size, distinctive optical properties, high chemical reactivity, and good stability. This study aims to synthesize gold nanoparticles using a chemical method and compare the results in terms of physical and chemical properties.
In the chemical method, gold chloride (HAuCl₄) was used as a source of gold ions, while a strong reducing agent, sodium borohydride (NaBH₄), was used to induce rapid reduction and form the nanoparticles.
The formation of the nanoparticles was observed by a color change to maroon, indicating the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) phenomenon characteristic of gold nanoparticles. Multiple techniques were used to characterize the particles, such as X-ray diffraction (XRD) to determine the crystalline phase, scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) to study shape and size, energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDX) to identify elements, and four-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) to analyze the stabilizing groups. The results demonstrated the successful preparation of stable nanoparticles.