Understanding gold nanoparticle dissolution in cyanide-containing solution via impact-chemistry

Phys Chem Chem Phys. 2018 Nov 14;20(44):28300-28307. doi: 10.1039/c8cp05154b.

Abstract

The electrochemical dissolution of citrate-capped gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) was studied in cyanide (CN-) containing solutions. It was found that the gold nanoparticles exhibited different dissolution behaviours as ensembles compared to the single particles. At the single particle level, a nearly complete oxidation of 60 nm AuNPs was achieved at concentrations greater than or equal to 35.0 mM CN- and at a potential of 1.0 V. Mechanistic insights and rate data are reported.