Production of Graphene Quantum Dots From Food Waste For Biomedical Applications

According to the United Nations, one third of all food produced worldwide is lost or wasted. Graphene Quantum Dots (GQDs) are a type of nanoparticle made from graphene that can be used for medical imaging or to improve polymer strength. This project’s objective is to develop a means to combat food waste through converting food waste composed of yams into GQDs. Yams were chosen due to their prevalence in third world nations such as Nigeria. The project team will accomplish this through practicing the GQD synthesis procedure on ground up charcoal to build familiarity with the method. Once familiarity has been established, the procedure will be applied to carbonized yams. The experiments were conducted in the San Jose State University biomedical engineering department lab in room 221 of the engineering building. The procedure consisted of breaking down charcoal powder into graphene quantum dots using nitric and sulfuric acid. The resulting solution was then neutralized with sodium hydroxide, and dialyzed for one week. The project team has produced and dialyzed the GQD solution. After which, the team expects to characterize the graphene quantum dots.