Development of a sustainable plasmon-enhanced spectroelectrochemical sensor using avocado pit (Persea americana) extract

With the increasing popularity of nanotechnology, it is undoubtedly necessary to render the synthesis of nanomaterials more environmentally benign to allow for continued growth of the field. Natural extracts provide a green alternative to harsh chemical reducing and capping agents in noble metal nanoparticle synthesis. In this study, we not only report the first synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using avocado pit extract (APE), but also establish improved surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) performance of these APE AgNPs over traditionally synthesized AgNPs. The exceptional size and shape monodispersity of these AgNPs is demonstrated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The excellent SERS performance of these particles is illustrated using both para-aminothiophenol (p-ATP) and 4,4'-bipyridine (4,4'-Bipy) as Raman probe molecules. Finally, efficient and cost effective plasmon-enhanced screen printed electrodes fashioned using these APE AgNPs is demonstrated for electrochemical SERS (EC-SERS) studies of adenine. (c) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.