Environmentally friendly method of silicon recycling: synthesis of silica nanoparticles in an aqueous solution

Future decades will experience tons of silicon waste from various sources, with no reliable recycling route. The transformation of bulk silicon into SiO2 nanoparticles is environmentally significant because it provides a way to recycle residual silicon waste. To address the needs of silicon recycling, we develop a top-down approach that achieves 100% conversion of bulk silicon to silica nanoparticles with outcome sizes of 8-50 nm. In addition to upcycling the potential of silica, our method also possesses several advantages, such as simplicity, scalability and controllable particle size distribution. Many fields of science and manufacturing, such as optics, photonics, medical, and mechanical applications, require size-controllable fabrication of silica nanoparticles. We demonstrate that control over temperature and hydrolysis time has a significant impact on the average particle size and distribution shape. Additionally, we unravel the process of nanoparticle formation using a theoretical nucleation model and quantum density functional theory calculations. Our results provide a theoretical and experimental basis for silica nanoparticle fabrication and pave the way for further silicon conservation research.