A way to prepare nano-Ag/epoxy resin composite and study of LSPR in composite

Comparing to the base epoxy resin, nano-composites usually have enhanced mechanical, thermal and electrical properties, and a lot of technology was introduced to get high quality nano-composites. In this work, Ag nanoparticles have been synthesized by using ethanol (and DMF) as reducing agent and solvent in the presence of ultraviolet radiation and polyvinyl pyrrolidone. The particle size can be controlled by changing the time of radiation and the concentration of silver nitrate. Localized surface plasmon resonacnces (LSPR) of colloidal Ag nanoparticles were observed by UV-visible absorption spectra, and the absorption peak position is determined by the size and shape of Ag nanoparticles. After mixing the ethanol containing Ag NPS into epoxy resin, and then removing the solvent by the method of reduced pressure distillation, cured Ag/epoxy resin nanocomposites were well prepared. It is confirmed that the LSPR of Ag NPS still exist in the composites and its UV-visible absorption spectra is tunable by choosing Ag NPS with different size and shape.