Improving electricity from silk cocoons through feeding silkworms with silver nanoparticles

Abstract

Silk Cocoon Membrane (SCM) a complex natural protein fibrous membrane is gaining significant attention in the textile industry, the biomedical industry and the research society due to its outstanding properties and ecological friendliness. In this work, we report improved electrical properties of SCM through in-vivo addition of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) to the silkworm. After feeding silkworm larvae with different concentrations of nanoparticles, the survival rates, and the performance of the larva and cocoon weights were evaluated, it was found that AgNPs through increase cocoon weights, in high concentrations, had some lethal effects on silkworms as well as affecting normal body performance of the silkworm larva. An analysis of the electric properties of the SCM fed on AgNPs under different conditions of temperature and humidity revealed the in-vivo fed AgNPs to silkworm for the production of SCM embedded with AgNPs results in an increase in electricity obtained from the SCM. Therefore, the successful generation of silver nanoparticle cocoons by in-vivo feeding is expected to open up possibilities for the large-scale production of electricity from the silk cocoon membrane.