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[Display omitted] • Green synthesis of hybrid biopolymer capped Ag-SiO 2 nanoflower is reported. • Alginate polymer acts as stabilizing agent for the nanostructure. • Excellent photocatalytic properties for methylene blue degradation within 1 min. • Synergistic effect of surface plasmon resonance of Ag and porosity of SiO 2 nanostructure. This report presents an ecofriendly synthesis and characterization of biopolymer (sodium alginate)-capped silver nanoparticle-silicon dioxide (Ag-SiO 2) hybrid nanoflowers and their efficiency for the plasmon-mediated dye degradation of methylene blue. The reducing and capping agents for the initial silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) synthesis were glucose and sodium alginate, respectively. The mesoporous silica nanostructures were introduced using two-step hydrolysis followed by a polycondensation process. Detailed structural and morphological characterizations of the as-prepared hybrid nanostructures were done using various techniques. The results revealed the formation of nanoflower-like hybrid alginate-capped Ag-SiO 2 nanostructures with a size range of approximately 523 ± 56 nm. The BET surface area analysis showed that the hybrid nanostructure has a surface area of 15.6 m2/g together with a pore diameter of 18.2 nm. The hybrid Ag-SiO 2 nanoflowers showed excellent catalytic properties for the visible light photodegradation of methylene blue dye after 1 min exposure compared to silver nanoparticles at the same condition. The synergistic effect of SiO 2 and Ag nanoparticles improved the catalytic property of the hybrid nanostructure. This study demonstrated a simple and effective model for the efficiency of designed hybrid nanostructures for degradation of industrial dyes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new method for the simple synthesis of stable heterostructured biopolymer (sodium alginate)-capped silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) based on green chemistry is reported. The as-prepared nanoparticles were characterized using the ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) absorption spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and dynamic light scattering (DLS) techniques. The results showed that the as-prepared Ag-NPs have a heterostructured morphology with particle size in the range 30 ± 18–60 ± 25 nm, showing a zeta potential of −62 mV. The silver nanoparticle formation was confirmed from UV-Vis spectra showing 424 nm as maximum absorption. The particle size and crystallinity of the as-synthesized nanoparticles were analyzed using TEM and XRD measurements, respectively. FTIR spectra confirmed the presence of alginate as capping agent to stabilize the nanoparticles. The Ag-NPs also showed excellent sensing capability, with a linear response to hydrogen peroxide spanning a wide range of concentrations from 10−1 to 10−7 M, which indicates their high potential for water treatment applications, such as pollution detection and nanofiltration composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]