Functional akund fibres by loading of carbon dots through an in-situ method

An in-situ synthesis method for loading Carbon Dots (CDs) on the surface and the inner cavities (lumens) of akund fibres has been presented. CDs were successfully loaded on the lumens of akund and AgNPs were also synthesized on the inner surface of fibres by using CDs on the surface of akund as reductant. The inner and outer surface morphology of akund-CDs and akund-CDs/AgNPs were obtained by using scanning electron microscope (FESEM). The fluorescence (FL) properties of CDs on the inner surface of akund-CDs and akund-CDs/AgNPs were compared by using confocal laser scanning microscopy (LSCM) and it showed that the FL intensity of CDs on akund-CDs was much stronger than that on akund-CDs/AgNPs. The microstructures of CDs on akund-CDs and akund-CDs/AgNPs were also probed by using time-resolved FL spectra for the first time, and the results showed that the microstructures of CDs on akund-CDs and akund-CDs/AgNPs were different. The FL property, load capacity, stability, antioxidant activity and washability of akund-CDs synthesized by different methods were also measured, and it was found that the in-situ method was much better than the traditional simple soaking method. This work suggested a promising approach to load nanoparticles on the lumens of akund, which endows akund with many functions to be applied in textile industry.