Academic Integrity: tutoring, explanations, and feedback — we don’t complete graded work or submit on a student’s behalf.

Synthesis of Copper(I) Oxide Particles with Variable Color:Demonstrating Size-De

ID: 1022754 • Letter: S

Question

Synthesis of Copper(I) Oxide Particles with Variable Color:Demonstrating Size-Dependent Optical Properties
Introduction Cluster based materials exhibit considerable advantages over bulk materials including surface features, electrostatic fields and reactivity that can differ and/or be varied as a function of both composition and cluster size. Nanocrystals formed from semiconductor materials with diameters of 1 – 30 nm are often referred to as quantum dots. Quantum dots are already in commercial use in sensors, LEDS and lasers including those used as readers for HD-DVD and Blu-ray high-definition DVDs. The spectral properties of quantum dots arise from a quantum confinement effect. When an electron in these semiconducting materials is excited into the conduction band a hole is created in the valence band. The physical distance between the location of the excited electron and the hole it came from is called the Bohr exciton radius (rB). In a bulk semiconductor crystal rB is small compared to the overall size of the crystal and the electron can migrate freely through the lattice. However, in the nanoscale quantum dot, rB is close to the diameter of particle and the electron is trapped in molecular orbitals rather than bands of orbitals. The energy spacing of these molecular orbitals depends on the number of atoms and hence the size of the crystal. Consequently, the excitation or absorption energy changes with the size of the quantum dot. As the dot gets bigger the absorption energy moves to lower frequency and the colour of light reflected changes from blue to red.
In this experiment you will synthesise micro- and nanosized copper(I) oxide particles with size-dependent optical properties by reducing alkaline copper(II)citrate complex (Benedict’s reagent) with glucose. The Cu2O particles varies from hundreds of nanometers to micrometers depending on concentrations of initial reagents and their colour varies from yellow to dark red, accordingly. Shown below are the electron-half-equations (a, b) and summary redox reaction (c) between copper(II) 25 ions and -hydroxy-ketone group of reducing sugars (e.g., fructose) in open-chain form. Redox reaction is activated by transformation of -hydroxy-ketone group to enediol via keto-enol tautomerization in alkali solutions. a) Oxidation: R1CH(OH)COR2 + 2 OH R1COCOR2 + 2 H2O + 2 e b) Reduction: 2Cu(in complex)2+ + 2 OH + 2 e Cu2O + H2O c) Summary: R1CH(OH)COR2 + 2Cu2+ + 4 OH R1COCOR2 + Cu2O + 3H2O
Question1: In this experiment you use Benedict’s reagent to synthesis copper (I) oxide nanoparticles. Research the scientific literature and provide a brief description of two alternative applications of Benedict’s reagent. (cite refs)?
Synthesis of Copper(I) Oxide Particles with Variable Color:Demonstrating Size-Dependent Optical Properties
Introduction Cluster based materials exhibit considerable advantages over bulk materials including surface features, electrostatic fields and reactivity that can differ and/or be varied as a function of both composition and cluster size. Nanocrystals formed from semiconductor materials with diameters of 1 – 30 nm are often referred to as quantum dots. Quantum dots are already in commercial use in sensors, LEDS and lasers including those used as readers for HD-DVD and Blu-ray high-definition DVDs. The spectral properties of quantum dots arise from a quantum confinement effect. When an electron in these semiconducting materials is excited into the conduction band a hole is created in the valence band. The physical distance between the location of the excited electron and the hole it came from is called the Bohr exciton radius (rB). In a bulk semiconductor crystal rB is small compared to the overall size of the crystal and the electron can migrate freely through the lattice. However, in the nanoscale quantum dot, rB is close to the diameter of particle and the electron is trapped in molecular orbitals rather than bands of orbitals. The energy spacing of these molecular orbitals depends on the number of atoms and hence the size of the crystal. Consequently, the excitation or absorption energy changes with the size of the quantum dot. As the dot gets bigger the absorption energy moves to lower frequency and the colour of light reflected changes from blue to red.
In this experiment you will synthesise micro- and nanosized copper(I) oxide particles with size-dependent optical properties by reducing alkaline copper(II)citrate complex (Benedict’s reagent) with glucose. The Cu2O particles varies from hundreds of nanometers to micrometers depending on concentrations of initial reagents and their colour varies from yellow to dark red, accordingly. Shown below are the electron-half-equations (a, b) and summary redox reaction (c) between copper(II) 25 ions and -hydroxy-ketone group of reducing sugars (e.g., fructose) in open-chain form. Redox reaction is activated by transformation of -hydroxy-ketone group to enediol via keto-enol tautomerization in alkali solutions. a) Oxidation: R1CH(OH)COR2 + 2 OH R1COCOR2 + 2 H2O + 2 e b) Reduction: 2Cu(in complex)2+ + 2 OH + 2 e Cu2O + H2O c) Summary: R1CH(OH)COR2 + 2Cu2+ + 4 OH R1COCOR2 + Cu2O + 3H2O
Question1: In this experiment you use Benedict’s reagent to synthesis copper (I) oxide nanoparticles. Research the scientific literature and provide a brief description of two alternative applications of Benedict’s reagent. (cite refs)?
Synthesis of Copper(I) Oxide Particles with Variable Color:Demonstrating Size-Dependent Optical Properties
Introduction Cluster based materials exhibit considerable advantages over bulk materials including surface features, electrostatic fields and reactivity that can differ and/or be varied as a function of both composition and cluster size. Nanocrystals formed from semiconductor materials with diameters of 1 – 30 nm are often referred to as quantum dots. Quantum dots are already in commercial use in sensors, LEDS and lasers including those used as readers for HD-DVD and Blu-ray high-definition DVDs. The spectral properties of quantum dots arise from a quantum confinement effect. When an electron in these semiconducting materials is excited into the conduction band a hole is created in the valence band. The physical distance between the location of the excited electron and the hole it came from is called the Bohr exciton radius (rB). In a bulk semiconductor crystal rB is small compared to the overall size of the crystal and the electron can migrate freely through the lattice. However, in the nanoscale quantum dot, rB is close to the diameter of particle and the electron is trapped in molecular orbitals rather than bands of orbitals. The energy spacing of these molecular orbitals depends on the number of atoms and hence the size of the crystal. Consequently, the excitation or absorption energy changes with the size of the quantum dot. As the dot gets bigger the absorption energy moves to lower frequency and the colour of light reflected changes from blue to red.
In this experiment you will synthesise micro- and nanosized copper(I) oxide particles with size-dependent optical properties by reducing alkaline copper(II)citrate complex (Benedict’s reagent) with glucose. The Cu2O particles varies from hundreds of nanometers to micrometers depending on concentrations of initial reagents and their colour varies from yellow to dark red, accordingly. Shown below are the electron-half-equations (a, b) and summary redox reaction (c) between copper(II) 25 ions and -hydroxy-ketone group of reducing sugars (e.g., fructose) in open-chain form. Redox reaction is activated by transformation of -hydroxy-ketone group to enediol via keto-enol tautomerization in alkali solutions. a) Oxidation: R1CH(OH)COR2 + 2 OH R1COCOR2 + 2 H2O + 2 e b) Reduction: 2Cu(in complex)2+ + 2 OH + 2 e Cu2O + H2O c) Summary: R1CH(OH)COR2 + 2Cu2+ + 4 OH R1COCOR2 + Cu2O + 3H2O
Question1: In this experiment you use Benedict’s reagent to synthesis copper (I) oxide nanoparticles. Research the scientific literature and provide a brief description of two alternative applications of Benedict’s reagent. (cite refs)?

Explanation / Answer

Two alternative applications of Benedict's reagent:

Benedicts reagent consists of copper sulphate, sodium carbonate (act as a mild base) and sodium citrate. It is known to be largely used for the detection of reducing sugars and other reducing substances (detection limit: 0.01 % glucose in water)1, also in the estimation of glucose in urine. Regarding experimental usage, on boiling this reagent with glucose, it gives a white/yellow precipitate of cuprous thiocyanate2.

Benedicts reagent may also be used to evaluate sorghum resistance related to the accumulation of undetected toxic host metabolites which is performed during TLC analysis of mesocotyl methanol extracts.3

Ref: 1. Textbook of Medical Biochemistry. Ramakrishnan S, et.al. Science, 18-19, (2004)

2. R.L. Shriner, et al. Systematic Identification of Organic Compounds 6th ed., New York, (1980)

3. Phytoalexin synthesis by the sorghum mesocotyl in response to infection by pathogenic and nonpathogenic fungi.R L Nicholson et. al PNAS, 84(16), 5520-5524 (1987)