Harnessing fruit extract for sustainable synthesis of ZnO and Ag-ZnO nanomaterials with dual functionalities

In this paper, we report Tamarindus indica fruit pulp extract mediated synthesis of ZnO and Ag-ZnO nanostructures. This plant extract base approach eliminate need for using toxic chemicals but also enhances its key properties like antibacterial efficacy and photocatalytic dye degradation of cationic dye like Rhodamine B. The phytochemicals present in Tamarindus indica fruit pulp extract acts as both stabilizing and reducing agent for synthesis of ZnO and Ag-ZnO nanostructures from zinc nitrate. Synthesized nanostructures were characterized by using XRD, SEM-EDS, UV-Vis and FT-IR analysis. Average size of ZnO and Ag-ZnO nanostructures was approximately 75 nm and 96 nm respectively. Ag-ZnO nanostructures show potent antimicrobial activity against both bacteria than ZnO. Dye degradation capacity of nanostructures observed against cationic dye Rhodamine B was 91.3% by ZnO and 96.23% by Ag-ZnO. This study presents a resource-efficient and environmentally friendly method for synthesizing ZnO and Ag-ZnO nanoparticles, which hold significant potential for diverse applications, particularly within the biomedical sector.