Green synthesis of copper nanoparticles by fruit extract of Ziziphus spina-christi (L) Willd.: Application for adsorption of triphenylmethane dye and antibacterial assay

One of the main subjects in nanoscience is the integration of green chemistry principles to nanotechnology. Recently the ever-increasing need to develop eco-friendly metal nanoparticle synthesis processes is observed. In this research, the ability of the fruit extracts of Ziziphus spina-christi (L) Willd. was examined as novel reducing agents for the green synthesis of copper nanoparticles (Cu-NPs). Biosynthesized Cu-NPs were characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). It was found that the as prepared Cu-NPs can be used as an efficient adsorptive nanomaterial to remove crystal violet (CV), from aqueous solution. The effects of independent variables such as pH, initial dye concentration, adsorbent dosage and stirring time on CV removal were studied using central composite design (CCD). Optimization of the variables for maximum adsorption of target dye was performed using desirability function (DF) combined response surface methodology (RSM). The results showed that 95% of CV with a high adsorption capacity (37.5 mg g(-1)) was removed with a little amount of adsorbent (80 mg) in a short time (7.5 min). In addition, antibacterial activity of the Cu NPs was studied on two different (g(-) and g(+)) bacteria; Escherichia coil and Staphylococcus aureus. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.