Preparation of a sustainable Zeolite A using an agroindustry solid waste loaded with silver nanoparticles: Antimicrobial activity study

•Sustainable zeolite A was synthetized and functionalized with silver nanoparticles.•Silver nanoparticles were obtained by a sodium citrate route reduction approach.•Zeolite A functionalized with silver nanoparticles showed attenuated Ag+ release.•Our bactericidal screening was successful, showing antimicrobial activity. This paper reports the synthesis of a microporous sustainable Zeolite A material using an agroindustry solid waste (SZA) and its functionalization with silver nanoparticles. Silver nanoparticles with ca. 9.0 nm of diameter onto SZA where were obtained using a sodium citrate reduction route. The release transport properties of Ag+ ions from SZA were investigated. We found that silver ions released from the SZA is controlled by the pseudo-Fickian diffusion mechanism. Furthermore, its demonstrate that the Colony-Forming Units (CFU) of (L. monocytogenes; P. auriginosa; S. aureus; S. typhinimurium; E. coli and S. epidermidis) decreases significantly after exposure to the SZA loaded with silver nanoparticles. The antimicrobial activity of this SZA loaded with silver nanoparticles relies on the exposure time with microorganism and concentration of these materials.