Single‐Step Acer pentapomicum‐Mediated Green Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles and Their Potential Antimicrobial and Antioxidant Activities

Abstract

The current investigation is aimed at synthesizing nonhazardous, ecofriendly silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) from aqueous leaf extract of Acer pentapomicum and at evaluating its antibacterial, antifungal, and antioxidant activities. In the present study, AgNPs were synthesized at room temperature by mixing 7 mL of 1 mM AgNO3 with 1 mL of A. pentapomicum leaf extract. The synthesized AgNPs were then characterized via various techniques, including UV/visible spectrophotometry showing maximum absorbance at 450 nm. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) reveals a spherical shape of AgNPs with a size range of 19‐25 nm, while the average crystalline nanosize of 9.5 nm and crystalline nature were confirmed by XRD. FTIR showing a broad signal of 3394.71 which confirmed the coating of phenolic and alcoholic compounds on AgNPs, indicating their possible role in the capping and stabilization of silver nanoparticles. EDX showed the elemental composition of the synthesized nanoparticles. Our AgNPs were also found stable at a temperature of 55°C and pH range of 6‐7 and in the presence of a salt solution. Furthermore, the green synthesized AgNPs were found to exhibit potent antibacterial activity against various bacterial species, with a maximum of 66% inhibition against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and 50.5% against E. coli and Xanthomonas campestris. These nanoparticles also possess good antifungal activity against various fungal species. Regarding the antioxidant activity, the AgNPs were found to possess a maximum of 93% antioxidant activity against DPPH at a concentration of 250 μg/mL and a minimum of 74% scavenging activity at 5 μg/mL.