The accumulation of organic contaminants including dyes in aquatic systems is of significant environmental concern, necessitating the development of affordable and sustainable materials for the treatment/elimination of these hazardous pollutants. Here, a green synthesis strategy has been used to develop a self-assembled gum kondagogu-sodium alginate bioconjugate sponge adorned with silver nanoparticles, for the first time. The properties of the nanocomposite sponge were then analyzed using FTIR, TGA, SEM, and MicroCT. The ensued biobased sponge exhibited hierarchical microstructure, open cellular pores, good shape memory, and mechanical properties. It merges the attributes of an open cellular porous structure with metal nanoparticles and are envisaged to be deployed as a sustainable catalytic system for reducing contaminants in the aqueous environment. This nanocomposite sponge showed enhanced catalytic effectiveness (km values up to 37 min-1 g-1 and 44 min-1 g-1 for methylene blue and 4-nitrophenol, respectively), antibacterial properties, reusability, and biodegradability (65% biodegradation in 28 days).

Department of Chemistry Mizoram University Aizawal 796004 Mizoram India

Department of Polymer Science and Rubber Technology Cochin University of Science and Technology Kochi 682 022 Kerala India

Institute for Nanomaterials Advanced Technologies and Innovation Studentská 1402 2 461 17 Liberec Czech Republic

Materials Research Laboratory Faculty of Mechanical Engineering Silesian University of Technology Konarskiego 18 a St 44 100 Gliwice Poland

Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials Czech Advanced Technology and Research Institute Palacký University in Olomouc Šlechtitelů 27 783 71 Olomouc Czech Republic

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