Effect of pH and biological media on polyvinylpyrrolidone-capped silver nanoparticles

Toxicity and mobility of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) vary in different surrounding environments. Surface coatings or functionalization, temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen concentration, nanoparticle concentration, the presence of organic matter, and ionic strength are factors which dictate the transformation of AgNPs in terms of aggregation and stabilization. Thus, the purpose of this study is to investigate the behavior of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)-capped AgNPs at different pHs (pH 2 to 10) and in different biological media (0.1 M phosphate buffer, nutrient broth, P5 and modified P5 media) analyzed using UV-Vis spectroscopy and zeta potential analyzer. The PVP-capped AgNPs changed its behavior in the presence of varying media, after 24 h incubation with shaking at 200 rpm at 30 degrees C. No aggregation was observed at pH 4 to 10, but distinctive at very low pH of 2. Low pH further destabilized PVP-capped AgNPs after 24 h of incubation. High ionic strength 0.1 M phosphate buffer also resulted in slow aggregation and eventually destabilized the nanoparticles. Biological media (nutrient broth, P5 and modified P5 media) containing organic components caused aggregation of the PVP-capped AgNPs. The increase in glucose and nutrient broth concentrations led to increased aggregation. However, PVP-capped AgNPs stabilized after 24 h incubation in media containing a high concentration of glucose and nutrient broth. The results demonstrate that low pH value, high ionic strength and the content of the biological media can influence the stability of AgNPs. This provides information on the aggregation behavior of PVP-capped AgNPs and can possibly further predict the fate, transport as well as the toxicity of silver nanoparticles after being released into the aquatic environment.