Facile synthesis of Silver@Eggshell nanocomposite: A heterogeneous catalyst for the removal of heavy metal ions, toxic dyes and microbial contaminants from water.

In this work, silver nanoparticles have been synthesized with an average particle size of 35 nm, within 90s, using microwave and Sapindus mukorossi extract as a stabilizing agent. The AgNps were surface immobilized on eggshells (ES) to obtain Ag@ES, which was characterized by UV-Vis, UV-DRS, FT-IR, ICP-OES, TGA-DSC, SEM-EDX, XRD and XPS. Its applicability as an environmental catalyst was evaluated by Cr (VI) adsorption, photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange, eriochrome black-T, methylene blue, rhodamine-B as model dyes and microbial inhibition against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Candida albicans.

White Eggshells: A Potential Biowaste Material for Synergetic Adsorption and Naked-Eye Colorimetric Detection of Heavy Metal Ions from Aqueous Solution.

In the present work, we have utilized a simple, no-cost, unmodified eggshell powder as a naked-eye colorimetric detector, which on simple dispersion in aqueous solution of metal ions exhibited characteristic color change from white to pale green, pale blue, yellow, pale yellow, dark yellow, pale pink, blue, and brown for metal ions V, Cr, Cr, Fe, Fe, Co, Cu, and Ag, respectively. The effects of various parameters like concentration of metal ions, pH, temperature, and adsorbent dosage were investigated by batch sorption experiments. Also, Freundlich and Langmuir models were used to describe the adsorption isotherm.