Biosynthesis of Gold Nanoparticles Using Common Aromatic Plants

ABSTRACT

A green, low-cost, and reproducible aromatic Mentha, Ocimum, and Eucalyptus plant's leaves negotiated synthesis of gold nanoparticles is reported. The synthesis was performed at room temperature. X-ray and transmission electron microscopy analyses were performed to ascertain the formation of gold nanoparticles. Nanoparticles, almost spherical in shape having a size of 3–16 nm, were found. The UV-visible study revealed the surface plasmon resonance at 539, 536, and 537 nm for gold nanoparticles synthesized using Mentha, Ocimum, and Eucalyptus leaf extracts, respectively. Results indicated that Ocimum leaf provided finer particles. The use of these plant's leaves for the synthesis of gold nanoparticles offers the benefit of eco-friendliness and amenability for large scale production through scaling–up, even by employing the candidate metabolites involvement.

KEYWORDS:

• eco-friendly
• Eucalyptus
• Mentha
• nanogold
• nanoparticles
• Ocimum

Acknowledgments

Authors gratefully acknowledge Dr. G. S. Saini, Advanced Research Instrumentation Center, JNU New Delhi, for providing the TEM image and K. Amar Nath, HEG Ltd., Bhopal, for arranging the XRD data.