Green Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles Using Equisetum Plant Extract and Its Antimicrobial Activities and Dye Degradation Behaviour

Abstract

Silver nanoparticles were prepared using the green synthesis method using Equisetum plant extracts. The plant extracts reduce silver ions into silver nanoparticles at ambient conditions. The process is straightforward, rapid, cost-effective and environment friendly. The silver nanoparticles were characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy, IR spectroscopy, SEM and XRD study. The average particle sizes are in the range of 10–20 nm. The UV–visible spectra of the silver nanoparticles exhibit an absorption band around 350 nm which suggests that the size of the silver nanoparticles is small. IR spectra show the characteristic peaks of flavonoids, terpenoids, and fatty acids of the plant extract. The antimicrobial activity of green synthesized silver nanoparticles was carried out using the disc diffusion method against human pathogens. Small-size silver nanoparticles show high antimicrobial activity in this work. The synthesized silver nanoparticles have also been chosen for the catalytic degradation of different dyes.