What is nano silver?

Nano means an order of magnitude. A nanometre (nm) equals a billionth metre. Nano silver describes particles of metallic silver with a size of 1-100 nm in at least one dimension. Nano silver particles may form and degrade spontaneously in nature [1-4] or can be produced artificially [5-7].

The nano scale increases the surface per volume unit and thus leads to increased chemical, biological and catalytic activity. Due to the larger surface, more reactive silver ions can be released. The beneficial surface-volume-ratio leads to a higher effect at lower raw materials use. See frequently asked questions for more information.

Due to its special physicochemical properties and its high potential, nano silver enables new and innovative applications.

Examples of application

The special physical-chemical properties of nano silver lead to new potentials and applications. Find out more about the various applications of nano silver:

Nano silver in medicine

You might also be interested in:

Literature

  1. N. Akaighe et al., Environ. Sci. Technol., 2011, 45, 3895-3901.
  2. Y.G. Yin et al., ACS Nano, 2012, 6, 7910-7919.
  3. R.D. Glover et al., ACS Nano, 2011, 5, 8950-8957.
  4. J.L. Gardea-Torresdey et al., Langmuir, 2003, 19, 1357-1361.
  5. U. Nickel et al., Langmuir, 2000, 16, 9087-9091.
  6. N. Shirtcliffe et al., J. Colloid Interface Sci., 1999, 211, 122-129.
  7. Saito, Y. et al., Langmuir, 2003, 19, 6857-6861.