Silver Decorated Lemon Peel Extract Functionalised Cobalt Ferrite Nanocomposite: Characterization, Multifunctional Antimicrobial and Catalytic Applications
Swati Gubbala, Gayathri Bindu Kurup, Prashanth Goud Banda, Raghasudha Mucherla
Том 88 №4
4 просмотров;
A biogenic strategy was employed to develop a multifunctional magnetic nanocomposite by first synthesizing cobalt ferrite (CoFe₂O₄) NPs and subsequently functionalizing it with lemon peel extract (LPE) rich in phenolics and flavonoids. The LPE acted like a biogenic reducing and stabilizing agent, facilitating the in-situ decoration of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) and yielding a novel ternary nanocomposite (Ag/LPE–CoFe₂O₄). Successful functionalization and Ag incorporation was confirmed by FTIR, XRD, FESEM, XPS, HRTEM, EDX and VSM. The Ag/LPE–CoFe₂O₄ nanocomposite exhibited noticeably enhanced antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive (S.aureus, B.subtilis), Gram-negative(K.pneumoniae, E.coli), and fungal strains (Candida, Aspergillus), resulting from the synergistic action of CoFe₂O₄, LPE phytochemicals, and Ag NPs. Catalytic tests further exhibited rapid reduction of 4-Nitrophenol(4-NP) to 4-Aminophenol(4-AP) under ambient conditions with a rate constant of 0.28±0.02 min-1 and complete conversion is achieved in 14 min. This study highlights the novelty of promoting citrus peel waste to engineer an Ag-decorated, magnetically retrievable nanocomposite that integrates recyclability, catalytic efficiency, and broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity. These results demonstrate Ag/LPE–CoFe₂O₄ NPs as an ecofriendly multifunctional nanocomposite with strong potential in environmental remediation and biomedical fields.