Abstract
The carbon quantum dot (CQD), a fluorescent carbon nanoparticle, has attracted considerable interest due to its photoluminescent property and promising applications in cell imaging and bioimaging. In this work, biocompatible, photostable, and sustainably sourced CQDs were synthesized from byproducts derived from a biorefinery process using one-pot hydrothermal treatment. The main components of byproducts were the degradation products (autohydrolyzate) of biomass pretreated by autohydrolysis. The as-synthesized CQDs had a size distribution from 2.0–6.0 nm and had high percentage of sp2 and sp3 carbon groups. The CQDs showed blue-green fluorescence with a quantum yield of ~13%, and the fluorescence behaviors were found to be stable with strong resistance to photobleaching and temperature change. In addition, it is found that the as-synthesized CQDs could be used for imaging of cells and tumors, which show potential applications in bioimaging and related fields such as phototherapy and imaging.
Highlights
The carbon quantum dot (CQD), a quantum-sized carbon material, has drawn great attention as a novel material due to its super hydrophilicity, good biocompatibility, and excellent photoluminescence properties [1,2,3,4]
Autohydrolyzates (AH) from wheat straw and bamboo residues were prepared according to our previous work [19], termed AH-WS and AH-BR
TheThe green andand low-cost precursor byproducts in the bio-refinery process, which areare obtained from the autohydrolyzate in a biorefinery waste stream, are reacted in the one-pot hydrothermal from the autohydrolyzate in a biorefinery waste stream, are reacted in the one-pot hydrothermal treatment h without adding strong acids, oxidizers, metal
Summary
The carbon quantum dot (CQD), a quantum-sized carbon material, has drawn great attention as a novel material due to its super hydrophilicity, good biocompatibility, and excellent photoluminescence properties [1,2,3,4]. CQD from such materials always involve both chemical oxidation and solvothermal treatment under harsh conditions. Such conditions are necessary in order to oxidize, exfoliate, and diminish the carbon precursors into nanoscale carbonaceous matter. Concentrated acid (such as sulfuric acid and nitric acid) and time-intensive treatment are required to establish the harsh conditions necessary for CQD formulation [11,12,13]. These methods are not regarded as green because of the personal
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