The inorganic synthesis of nanoparticles traditionally utilizes toxic, expensive, unstable, and/or explosive materials, like dimethyl cadmium and phosphenes, to produce the quantum dots that are used in electronics, medicine, and pharmaceuticals . To reduce the hazardous materials used in this process, scientists are creating alternative synthesis methods, such as using less toxic reagents in ‘green’ synthesis, reduced reaction temperatures, and flow chemistry. Biosynthesis is a promising alternative method for synthesizing nanoparticles, as the particles can be produced with minimal hazardous reagents and have the desired ligands attached to the surface. In this experiment, we utilized the adaptive properties of the bacterium Shewanella oneidensis (S. oneidensis) to synthesize zinc sulfide and cadmium sulfide nanoparticles. S. oneidensis has been demonstrated to adapt to toxic environments and utilize metals as the terminal electron acceptor for its respiration, making the bacterium a good candidate for nanoparticle synthesis. Our nanoparticles were characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy and compared to previous research to determine the size and concentration of the nanoparticles produced. S. oneidensis has previously been used for the production of silver quantum dots, but not for highly popular cadmium dots (CdS, CdSe or CdTe) due to the toxicity of cadmium. This research serves to propose biosynthesis with S.oneidensis as simpler and less hazardous alternative synthesis method to produce these in-demand nanoparticles.

Biosynthesis of zinc sulfide and cadmium sulfide nanoparticles with Shewanella oneidensis

255th National Meeting (2018)

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