Neutral AuCl complexes supported in linear high molecular weight, poly-spirophosphazene-phosphine copolymers and its conversion to nanostructured gold materials

Abstract

The reaction under very mild conditions of the polyspirophosphazene copolymer with pendant diphenylphosphine groups {[NP(O2C12H8)](0.85)[NP(OC6H4PPh2)(2)](0.15)}(n) (I) (O2C12H8= 2,2'-dioxybiphenyl) with [Au(THT)Cl] (THT = tetrahydrothiophene) gives the neutral polymeric complex {[NP(O2C12H8)](0.85)[NP(OC6H4PPh2-AuCl)(2)](0.15)}(n) (II). The new material has been characterized by spectrocopic and thermochemical methods (TGA and DSC). Pyrolysis of the Au polymer (I) in air at 800 degrees C gave gold nanostructured materials that were characterized by TEM, SEM-EDAX and X-ray diffraction. Nanoparticles in the range of 90 to 130 nm were seen.