Preparation of aluminum nanoparticles using bipolar pulsed electrical discharge in water

Al nanoparticles were synthesized in liquid phase plasma using Al chloride as the precursor. CTAB was used as the surfactant to obtain well dispersed particles. When the surfactant was not added, large aggregated particles were generated. With increasing CTAB dosage, the size of the Al particles decreased and the degree of dispersion of the particles increased. At the initial stage of plasma discharge, dendrite shaped particles were produced. As discharge time evolved, however, particle size decreased and the particle morphology also changed into spherical shape. The solution pH decreased with increasing plasma discharge time.