Synthesis of silica nanoparticles from sugarcane bagasse by sol-gel method.

The silica nanoparticles have been successfully synthesized from sugarcane bagasse using the sol-gel method. Sugarcane bagasse contains abundant silica, so it can used as an alternative source of silica nanoparticles. Sugarcane bagasse was calcined at 650 °C for 2 hours, then it was extracted using NaOH to obtain sodium silicate solution. The solution was titrated with HCl for gelling process. The synthesized of silica nanoparticles from sugarcane bagasse were characterized using FTIR and XRD. Based on the XRD characterization, the results showed that the silica had an amorphous phase, and the FTIR spectra has siloxane and silanol groups. The synthesized silica nanoparticles have an average size of 53 nm which was calculated using Scherrer Formula. From the data obtained, sugarcane bagasse can used as a source of silica nanoparticles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]