Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) Extract Mediated Green Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles

Abstract

A novel switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) extract mediated green process was demonstrated for the synthesis of silver nanoparticles from silver nitrate solution at ambient temperature. UV-visible spectroscopic analysis indicates the rapid reduction of silver (Ag+) ions by swithgrass extract. The silver nanoparticles began to form at 15 min and the reduction reaction was completed within 2 hours. Synthesized silver nanoparticles were subjected to x-ray diffraction (XRD) for structural characterization, which confirms the FCC symmetry of silver nanoparticles with the lattice parameter of 4.0962 ?. The particle size of bio-synthesized silver nanoparticles was identified through transmission electron microscopic (TEM) analysis and found to be in the range of 20 - 40 nm.