One-pot synthesis of Forsythia@carbon quantum dots with natural anti-wood rot fungus activity

Abstract

This study synthesized the Forsythia@carbon quantum dots (CQDs) in one-pot method with a natural anti-wood rot fungus activity. Chinese herbal medicine-Forsythia was used as a raw material, and the environmental-friendly fluorescent Forsythia@CQDs was prepared through microwave treatment. The antifungal test against two fungi (G. trabeum, C. versicolor) demonstrated that the Minimum Inhibition Concentration (MIC) of Forsythia@CQDs was about 1% of the MIC of Forsythia suspense extract. The weight loss rate of wood samples treated by Forsythia@CQDs was as low as 1 (±0.5)%. The antifungal property was equivalent to that of the traditional chemical preservative Ammoniacal Copper Quats (ACQ). The leachability test results of wood preservatives showed that Forsythia@CQDs had a higher fixation rate in wood than Forsythia, and even exceeded ACQ preservatives. Also, its easily-detectable fluorescence effect could track the distribution of preservatives in the wood. This research indicates that Chinese herbal medicine@CQDs-derived environmentally-protective wood preservatives can be an improvement of standard chemical preservatives.