Synthesis and characterization of biopolymer-based copper carbonate nanoparticles

The aim of this work was to select a biopolymer (chitosan, methyl cellulose, hydroxyethyl cellulose and hyaluronic acid) as stabilizing agent for copper carbonate nanoparticles (CC-NPs). It was found that the optimal precursor is Cu(CH3COO)2, and the optimal precipitator is (NH4)2CO3. According to XRD data, the optimal sample has the chemical formula Cu2(OH)2CO3. SEM showed that CC-NPs consist of spherical aggregates with diameter of 0.6-1.0 mu m formed by particles of 30-80 nm. The optimization of the synthesis revealed that molar ratio Cu(CH3COO)2: (NH4)2CO3 of 1:1 is optimal for the production of CC-NPs. SEM micrographs revealed formation of CC-NPs with size of 30-100 nm at stabilization with hyaluronic acid, 45-90 nm at methyl cellulose, 50-150 nm at hydroxyethyl cellulose and 30-85 nm at chitosan. Quantum chemical modeling and FTIR spectroscopy confirmed the possibility of forming scaffold matrices of biopolymer-based CC-NPs. Among considered biopolymers, chitosan was set as the optimal stabilizing agent for CC-NPs. Which provided formation of the smallest particles with size of 30-85 nm. In future works, CC-NPs-chitosan complex can be studied as a scaffold for multifaceted applications in medicine, catalysis, coatings, pigments etc