A reactor-on-a-chip for cost-effective synthesis of gold nanoparticles

Abstract The synthesis of gold nanoparticles is a research topic of interest due to the many different applications these can find. Optimizing nanoparticle synthesis processes requires efficient control over flow-transport properties (i.e., velocity profiles). Microfluidics has been vastly demonstrated to a wide range of fluid samples. In this contribution, we aim to explore the applicability of an alternating current electroosmotic micromixer as a microreactor for the synthesis of gold nanoparticles. Computational models predicted flow profiles amenable for nanoparticle synthesis and experimental measurements provided the required validation. Nanoparticles were characterized and found to be anisotropic.