ABSTRACT
Biosynthesis of gold nanoparticles has emerged as an important area in nanotechnology and biotechnology due to growing need to develop environmentally benign technologies. Generally, nanoparticles are prepared by a variety of chemical methods which are not environmentally friendly. In the present study, we report a rapid and convenient method to reductively prepare gold nanoparticles from auric chloride using aqueous extract of Mirabilis jalapa flowers. The flower extract acts as a reducing agent and encapsulating cage for the gold nanoparticles. The production of gold nanoparticles has been done by the controlled reduction of the Au3+ ion to Au0. The formation of gold nanoparticles has been established by FT-IR and UV-Vis spectroscopy, as well as by TEM, XRD, EDAX and AFM. The study suggests that M. jalapa flowers can be a cheap source as a reductant for the production of gold nanoparticles.