Green synthesis, characterization and biological activities of silver nanoparticles from alkalinized Cymbopogon citratus Stapf

Emmanuel Ajayi and Anthony Afolayan

Abstract

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have been synthesized from the alkalinized leaf extract of Cymbopogon citratus, also known as lemon grass (LG), and characterized for their size and shape using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The total formation of the AgNPs was observed visually with a color change from yellow to brownish-black. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS/EDX) were conducted to determine the various functional groups and the concentration of metal ions in the nanoparticles. The data analysis showed spherically shaped nanoparticles with a size of 10–33 nm, as revealed by TEM, thereby complementing the result for SEM. FTIR identifies the ethylene group as a reducing and capping agent for the formation of the nanoparticles. The x-ray diffraction pattern confirmed the presence of silver crystallites as well as their size, further confirming the result of the TEM. AgNPs do not exhibit very good potential as free radical scavengers when compared to the standards. The synthesized AgNPs in suspension showed activity against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, with minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) in the range of 31.25–62.5 µg ml⁻¹. In summary, the synthesized AgNPs possessed an acceptable size and shape