Self-embedding silver nanoparticles: Researchers find the ‘silver lining’ in cotton gin waste

Silver nanoparticles are highly sought-after products in the nanotechnology industry because of their antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, electrical, and optical properties. Now, researchers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)'s Agricultural Research Service and Oklahoma State University have revealed the ability of cotton gin waste – a byproduct from the process that separates fibers from the seeds of cotton – to synthesize and generate silver nanoparticles in the presence of silver ions. The researchers used a simple heat treatment of cotton gin waste materials in water containing silver ions that produced silver nanoparticles without the need for additional chemical agents.