Noble Metal Composite Porous Silk Fibroin Aerogel Fibers

Materials

ChiK. Nguyen¹  MadelineY. Ryu¹  AlexanderN. Mitropoulos¹  Jenny Wang¹  Kamil Woronowicz¹  F.John Burpo¹  EnochA. Nagelli¹  J.Kenneth Wickiser¹  R.Kenneth Sims² 

[1] Department of Chemistry and Life Science, United States Military Academy, West Point, NY 10996, USA;Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering, United States Military Academy, West Point, NY 10996, USA;

关键词: biopolymer;    silk fibroin;    aerogel;    fiber;    nanomaterials;    nanoparticles;    noble metals;    gold;    platinum;    palladium;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ma12060894

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Nobel metal composite aerogel fibers made from flexible and porous biopolymers offer a wide range of applications, such as in catalysis and sensing, by functionalizing the nanostructure. However, producing these composite aerogels in a defined shape is challenging for many protein-based biopolymers, especially ones that are not fibrous proteins. Here, we present the synthesis of silk fibroin composite aerogel fibers up to 2 cm in length and a diameter of ~300 μm decorated with noble metal nanoparticles. Lyophilized silk fibroin dissolved in hexafluoro-2-propanol (HFIP) was cast in silicon tubes and physically crosslinked with ethanol to produce porous silk gels. Composite silk aerogel fibers with noble metals were created by equilibrating the gels in noble metal salt solutions reduced with sodium borohydride, followed by supercritical drying. These porous aerogel fibers provide a platform for incorporating noble metals into silk fibroin materials, while also providing a new method to produce porous silk fibers. Noble metal silk aerogel fibers can be used for biological sensing and energy storage applications.

【 授权许可】

Unknown