Water-soluble silver nanocomposites with 1-Vinyl-1,2,4-triazole copolymer

87 Polymer nanocomposites with silver nanoparticles are promising for medicine, optoelectronics, and nan ophotonics due to the unique properties of silver in the nanosized state and multifunctional properties of the polymer matrix [1–5]. Recently, we reported an efficient stabilization of silver nanoparticles with 1 vinyl 1,2,4 triazole homo polymer (PVT) and its copolymer with sodium meth acrylate (Na MAA) [6, 7]. In this work, we report the results on the synthesis of a new VT–Na AA copolymer and formation of water soluble silver containing nanocomposites on its basis. The copolymerization of VT with Na AA was car ried out in an aqueous solution in the presence of a radical type initiator, azobis(isobutyronitrile) (AIBN) at 60°C. The resultant copolymer as a white powder is readily soluble in water and has a characteristic viscos ity of 5.5 dL/g. The composition and structure of the copolymer were determined by elemental analysis, potentiometric titration, and IR spectroscopy. It was found that copolymer macromolecule contains VT (70 mol %) and Na AA units (27 mol %) along with acrylic acid units (3 mol %) resulting from the partial hydrolysis of Na AA molecules. The IR spectra of the copolymers contain no absorption bands of vinyl group (1654 cm–1) and show absorption bands corresponding to the stretching and bending vibrations of the triazole ring (cm–1): 3106 (C–H), 1504 (C=N), 1277 (N–N), 1005 (C–H), 664 (C–N), as well as stretching vibrations of C=O in –COOH and –COO– (1710 and 1575 cm–1, respec tively). Nanocomposites were formed in an aqueous solu tion of the obtained copolymer by the reduction of sil ver ions from silver nitrate with sodium borohydride. The prepared nanocomposites are brown powders containing 2–6% of silver readily soluble in water.