Effects of the intermicellar exchange rate and cations on the size of silver chloride nanoparticles formed in reverse micelles of AOT

Nanoparticles of silver chloride have been synthesized by the method of mixing of two microemulsions, one containing silver ions and other containing chloride ions. The effects of changing the intermicellar exchange rate by varying the continuous phase, by adding benzyl alcohol, and by varying the water to surfactant molar ratio as well as the effect of cations (metal chlorides from the first and second group of the periodic table) on the particle size and the size distribution and the number density have been studied. The particle diameters are measured from the photomicrographs obtained by transmission electron microscopy. The average particle size, the polydispersity, and the number of particles formed are shown to be dependent on the intermicellar exchange rate and/or the rigidity of the surfactant shell. This dependency can be qualitatively explained by means of nucleation and growth phenomena, as mediated by the intermicellar exchange of contents.