Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles Using Chitosan as Stabilizer Agent: Application towards Electrocatalytical Reduction of p-Nitrophenol

In this paper, a simple chemical method is reported for the synthesis of silver nanoparticles using beta-1,4 poly D-glucosamine as stabilizer agent and their application towards electrocatalytical determination of p-nitrophenol (p-NP). The formation of beta-1,4 poly D-glucosamine capped silver nanoparticles was confirmed using UV-Vis spectroscopy, Scanning Electronic Microscopy (SEM), and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The electrocatalytic activity of the beta-1,4 poly D-glucosamine capped silver nanoparticles modified graphite carbon electrode (beta 1,4 p-DGA-AgNPs/GrCE) towards p-NP was studied using cyclic voltammetry (CV), AC electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and amperometric (i-t) studies. Typically, the obtained results were compared with those for unmodified graphite carbon. The results clearly reveal that the end prepared sensor has high electrocatalytic activity for p-NP reduction. From the DPV results, (beta 1,4 p-DGA-AgNPs/GrCE) was concluded as viable sensor for the electrochemical determination of p-NP in a linear range from 1.0x10(-6) to 1.0x10(-4) mol L-1. The minimum calculated concentration that can be detected by the proposed electrode is 6.0x10(-7) mol L-1 in terms of the detection limit ((3x sigma)/P).