Using Cinnamon In the Production of Nanoparticles 126
An anonymous reader writes "Scientists at the University of Missouri used cinnamon to replace almost all toxic chemicals needed for making gold nanoparticles used in electronics and healthcare products. Nanoparticle production requires the use of extremely dangerous and toxic chemicals. While the nanotechnology industry is expected to produce large quantities of useful nanoparticles in the near future, the entire production process could be detrimental to the environment."
Re:Not likely (Score:4, Interesting)
Distill the oils of both.
Put a toothpick in each oil sample and let it soak it up.
I'll bet twenty bucks you can hold the cassia in your mouth while the cinnamon one will blister you.
Re:The "toxicity" part is bullshit... (Score:4, Interesting)
Nice; but nowadays the toxic hydrazine and sodium borohydride are used. Then how do you come to say 'the "toxicity" part is bullshit' in your topic?
That said, phosphorus itself is not completely harm-free itself ...
They are only sometimes used. There are lots of current (last five years) papers where they aren't used, NaBH4 and N2H4 are just extreme examples being used - phosphorus is still used, as is sodium ascorbate (also known as vitamin C). Hell, the lab down the hall from mine makes AuNPs via laser ablation and deposition - no reducing agent needed at all, just a vacuum.
Phosphorus is only dangerous if you eat it on the multi-gram scale or if you heat it, and frankly, anyone who does that gets what they deserve. If you're worried about waste, elemental phosphorus will oxidize pretty quickly with contact with air (and gold nanoparticles) and become biocompatible phosphates.
Yes, white phosphorus is pyrophoric, but it's the less stable of the two allotropes, and it's pretty hard to make, so you don't need to worry about it being a sideproduct.