Biotemplated inorganic materials
AssigneeMassachusetts Institute of Technology
InventorsBrian Neltner, Angela Belcher
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Abstract
A method of making a metal oxide nanoparticle comprising contacting an aqueous solution of a metal salt with an oxidant. The method is safe, environmentally benign, and uses readily available precursors. The size of the nanoparticles, which can be as small as 1 nm or smaller, can be controlled by selecting appropriate conditions. The method is compatible with biologically derived scaffolds, such as virus particles chosen to bind a desired material. The resulting nanoparticles can be porous and provide advantageous properties as a catalyst.
Claims21
A method of producing a nanoporous material comprising:
- contacting an aqueous solution of a metal salt with an oxidant to produce a plurality of metal oxide nanoparticles;
- and
- templating the plurality of metal oxide nanoparticles on a template having an affinity for the metal oxide in the aqueous solution to produce the nanoporous material.
A method of making supported catalytic material comprising:
- contacting a ceramic support with a virus particle to form a supported virus conjugate, the virus particle having a first surface moiety having affinity for the ceramic support and a second surface moiety having an affinity for a catalytic material;
- and
- forming a plurality of catalyst nanoparticles at the surface of the virus particle by contacting the supported virus conjugate with an aqueous solution of a metal salt and an oxidant.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.