James Williams

Silver nanoparticles are oxidized and interact with organic surfaces. See how the silver spoon darkens, if you have one. Without chemical methods, you will not succeed. To clean the surface of bacteria, bactericidal surfactants are used

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/299537375_Mirgorod_YuA_Mikhno_IL_Taran_VV_Test_of_bactericidal_activity_nonilizotiuronium_chloride_in_natural_conditions_Bulletin_of_the_Sumy_State_University1996_N1_126_-131

or materials with copper nanoparticles are made

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/335637644_Copper-Containing_Cellulose_Material

What do you mean by non-chemical? Any binding agent (or any molecule for that matter) will be chemical. Did you perhaps mean non-synthetic?

Elizabeth Terlinden

In textbooks on chemistry, bonds between molecules are divided into physical (dipole-dipole, dipole-induced dipole, ion-dipole) and chemical (hydrogen bonds, donor-acceptor). These interactions are an order of magnitude smaller in energy than chemical bonds between atoms (covalent, ionic, coordination).

Hi James Williams ,

Thiol groups may be worked with your problem. Try to find it from references. You can use easily it to bind Ag NPs with that functionalization...Read more....

To be more specific, I mean non-toxic chemicals. For example I've been working with vegetable glycerin and where it provides some affects I'm looking for, I'm looking for a binder that won't wash off easily with soap and water on common surfaces like a kitchen counter.

I agree with Nadeesha M. Hettiarachchi that thiols would be an appropriate functional group for your purpose. They have been used to bind AgNPs before Article Controlling Assembly of Mixed Thiol Mono layers on Silver Na...

Of the two agents used in this paper, mercaptopropanesulfonate is less toxic, though it still may not meet your standards.

Thanks Nadeesha M. Hettiarachchi and Elizabeth Terlinden for there info on Thiols. I've already started into working out some testing protocols. Thanks to everyone else for their reply. I'll update you on my testing results.