We demonstrate a simple templateless and surfactant-free wet-chemical method of preparing silver (Ag)
nanostructures with different dendritic morphologies at room temperature. This has been accomplished by
aging the aqueous mixture of AgNO3 and citrate salts, carrying different cations for different time periods.
Transmission electron microscopic (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies confirmed the formation of
single-crystalline dendritic Ag nanostructures. It has been found that the nature and the concentration of
citrate salt have a significant effect on the morphology of the formed Ag nanostructures. A possible formation
mechanism has also been discussed on the basis of monitoring the surface plasmon resonance properties and
TEM images with time during the course of formation of silver dendrites. The formed dendritic silver
nanostructures showed excellent catalytic activity in the borohydride reduction of p-nitrophenol to
p-aminophenol compared to the spherical silver nanoparticles.
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