Sunlight-Assisted Green Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles using Musa accuminata Peel and their Antimicrobial Potential

Abstract

Green nanotechnology has acquired high demand due to its cost-effective and eco-friendly approach for the synthesis of nanoparticles. Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), currently, are among the most widely used artificial nanomaterials present in a range of consumer products. The silver nanoparticles were synthesized from the water extract of banana peels using a green technique that is eco friendly. The plant's secondary metabolites served as capping and reducing agents. The synthesized silver nanoparticles (MAP-AgNPs) were characterized using Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy, Ultraviolet-visible Spectroscopy (UV-vis), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and Energy-dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS). The plant extract contained bioactive components that were responsible for biogenic synthesis and the capping and stabilizing properties. These compounds could be the source of the vibration frequencies noticed in the spectra of the MAP AgNPs and that of the plant extract, such as those seen at 3272 cm^-1, 3280 cm^-1, 2918 cm^-1, 2851 cm^-1, 1736 cm^-1, 1636 cm^-1 etc.  The 400–500 nm absorption peak was visible in the UV–Vis spectra, showing the adsorption of silver nanoparticles. XRD studies confirmed the crystalline nature of the synthesized material showing five distinctive diffraction peaks at 2θ degrees of 38.37^◦ (111), 44.54^◦ (200), 64.75^◦ (220), 77.89^◦ (311) and 81.87^◦ (222), which evidently indicated the formation of the face-centered cubic (fcc) crystalline structure of the AgNPs. The SEM image revealed the shape of the synthesized MAP AgNPs as being spherical. EDS result showed that the materials are primarily composed of silver, 65.20 wt%. Other minor visible elements like carbon, oxygen, silicon, iron, potassium, calcium, and aluminum may have come from the phytochemicals from the plant part used to bioreduce AgNO₃ solution. Thermogravimetric analysis shows that the material is stable, since no loss in mass was recorded until at a very high temperature of about 300 ^oC. The nanoparticles exhibited antibacterial activity against all tested organisms, indicating broad-spectrum efficacy.