Nanoparticles of copper sulfide have been synthesized
by reacting a copper ammonia complex with an
equimolar thiourea solution in Triton-X 100/cyclohexane water-in-oil
microemulsions. The presence of an
exceptionally sharp and blue-shifted peak at 475 ± 2 nm in the
UV−vis spectrum reveals the formation of
quasi-monodispersed, size-quantized particles. Using absorption
spectroscopy, the formation of a chalchocite
(Cu2S) phase is inferred. The peak position in the
absorption spectra was found to be independent of net
micellar water content as well as aging effect. It is attributed
to the formation of a Cu(I) thiourea complex
on the surface of the particles, which are hydrogen bonded to the
polyoxyethylene (POE) chain of Triton-X
100 (TX-100). The role of thiourea in the tailoring of particles
to the micellar periphery was confirmed by
synthesizing the nanoparticles using other S2- agents
like H2S, and Na2S. The role of the POE
chain in
mediating the adsorption was brought out by carrying out the reaction
in microemulsions of POE containing
surfactants other than TX-100. The kinetics of agglomeration has
been studied and fits well in second-order
rate law. A further enhancement in the solution stability of the
particles was achieved by means of sodium
hexametaphosphate.
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