Green Synthesis of a Cellulose Acetate/Acrylic Acid/ZnO–SiO ₂ Nanocomposite Hydrogel as a Nano‐Biosorbent for Fungicide Removal and Antibacterial Activity

ABSTRACT Fungicides widely used in agriculture are persistent pollutants, making their removal from water essential. In this study, a novel nanocomposite hydrogel adsorbent was synthesized for fungicide removal. First, Frangula alnus extract, a novel and effective reducing agent, was utilized to synthesize ZnO–SiO 2 nanoparticles through phytosynthesis. These nanoparticles are then incorporated into a cellulose acetate/acrylic acid hydrogel, resulting in a CA/AA/ZnO–SiO2 nanocomposite hydrogel as a new type of nanobiosorbent. Subsequently, the effectiveness of this nanocomposite as an efficient absorbent and antibacterial agent for eliminating fungicides, such as carbendazim was evaluated. Some analytical techniques were used to analyze the structure of the nanocomposite. The scanning electron microscope (FESEM) image reveals a porous nanocomposite with pore sizes of about 0.3 µm, containing ZnO–SiO 2 nanoparticles averaging 66 nm and uniformly dispersed within the hydrogel. Further, the specific surface area value of this nanocomposite is 78.84 m2·g‐1. This nanocomposite exhibited a removal efficiency of carbendazim of ∼80% after 120 min at pH 7 and a nanocomposite concentration of 2.5 g·L −1 . Furthermore, an antibacterial test revealed that CA/AA/ZnO–SiO 2 nanocomposite, with 7% ZnO‐SiO 2 , showed around 80%, 78%, and 72% reduction in colony‐forming units per millilitre against Bacillus cereus , Staphylococcus aureus , and Micrococcus luteus .