Green technology extraction and characterisation of silica nanoparticles from palm kernel shell ash via sol-gel

Silica nanoparticles have numerous applications including drug delivery, lightweight aggregates, and energy storage. It has been manufactured from different agricultural bioresources with limited research on palm kernel shell ash (PKSA). This study produced silica nanoparticles from palm kernel shell ash. Modified sol-gel extraction technique was used to produce the silica nanoparticles from PKSA. The extracted silica nanoparticles were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscope (SEM) with Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) techniques, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) method and Thermogravimetric analysis (TG). The microstructural analysis reveals that the unit size of the extracted silica nanoparticles is between 50-98 nm, with a very high specific surface area (438 m² g^-1). EDX confirmed the presence of SiO₂ in the sample. FT-IR analysis shows the existence of silanol and siloxane groups. This success means, decrease in environmental contamination caused by indiscriminate disposal of palm kernel shell (PKS) and silica nanoparticles for advanced material applications.