Low-cost Green Synthesis of Silica Engineering Nanomaterials from Rice Husk (Agriculture waste) and its Physical and Luminescent Properties Measurements

Abstract

The electrical, electronics,and drug industries are heavily reliant on the use of Silica materials for several applications. Green source of production of silica materials is very important to meet the growing demandfor industrial purposes. The present work discusses the recent nanosilica production using low-costmethods, from rice husk-agricultural waste, andtheir structural, microstructural, and optical properties measurement for its applications.The crystallite size of silica particleswas measured using XRD is 26 nm and 55 nm, which are prepared from rice husk synthesized by both coprecipitation and leaching processes, respectively.. The SEM images of both the samples showed structural order of the pores within the mesoporous structure. The leached sample showed a purity of around 80%. The infrared spectral data also supports the presence of hydrogen-bonded silanol groups and the siloxane groups in the silica. These nanosilica particles showed Photoluminescence in UV, Visible, and NIR regions. The nanoscale silica formation is also confirmed by TEM and DLS measurements. Zeta Potential studies found -22.12 mV reveals the stability of prepared nano silica for a longer duration.