Synthesis and physicochemical characterization of silver nanoparticles from the dye-yielding plants, Terminalia paniculata and Mallotus philippensis

Dye-yielding plants have been proved to be strong candidates for several scientific experiments. But the exploration of these plants in the field of nanotechnology is mere. On this background, the present study is mainly focused on the synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) from the fruit extracts of two important dye-yielding plants, i.e., Terminalia paniculata (TP) and Mallotus philippensis (MP) . The combined action of methanolic fruit extracts and silver nitrate solution might be responsible for the synthesis of AgNPs. Physicochemical profiling was also performed for the detailed characterization of AgNPs. Ultraviolet–visible–near infrared (UV–Vis–NIR) spectral analysis, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray (EDAX) analysis and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques were adopted to characterize the synthesiszed AgNPs. From UV–Vis–NIR spectroscopy analysis, the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) spectrum of AgNPs produced a significant peak at 456 nm and 438 nm in T. paniculata and M. philippensis , respectively. From the SEM analysis, it was observed that the structure of synthesized AgNPs from both the species varied. Spherical shaped nanoparticles were obtained from T. paniculata , whereas cubical in M. philippensis . SEM coupled with EDAX technique was adopted to expose the elemental composition of the synthesized AgNPs. The prominence of silver was expressed by the characteristic peak which was obtained through the EDAX analysis. The crystalline size of the silver nanoparticles was unveiled by X-ray diffraction technique. So, the present study is a novel attempt to elucidate the potential of dye-yielding plants in nanoparticle synthesis, which can ultimately be a lead toward the use of these plants in green nanotechnology.