Preparation of gold nanoparticles using hydroquinone derivatives

• A method to synthesize GNPs by using HQ, MHQ, TBHQ and PHQS as reducing agent.
• The activation energies of HQ and its derivatives are in the order PHQS>TBHQ>MHQ>HQ.
• GNPs that were synthesized with HQ, MHQ and TBHQ are quasi-spherical.
• GNPs that were synthesized with PHQS are of several kinds of morphologies.

This work first focuses on the growth procedures of gold nanoparticles using HQ, MHQ, TBHQ and PHQS as reducing agents through a seed-mediated growth approach. It was found that the activation energy of the hydroquinone and its derivatives are in the order PHQS>TBHQ>MHQ>HQ. The morphology of GNPs synthesized with HQ, MHQ, and TBHQ is quasi-spherical and the size is 10–20 nm, while PHQS are of several kinds of morphologies, such as rods and triangular prisms; PHQS could be a weak shape-directing agent. We speculate that it resulted from the electric field asymmetry of its ionic side group.

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