Abstract
Cu nanoparticles are a potential material for creating novel alternative antimicrobial products due to their unique antibacterial/antifungal properties, stability, dispersion, low cost and abundance as well as being economical and ecofriendly. In this work, carboxymethyl cellulose coated core/shell SiO(2)@Cu nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized by a simple and effective chemical reduction process. The initial SiO(2) NPs, which were prepared from rice husk ash, were coated by a copper ultrathin film using hydrazine and carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) as reducing agent and stable agent, respectively. The core/shell SiO(2)@Cu nanoparticles with an average size of ~19 nm were surrounded by CMC. The results indicated that the SiO(2)@Cu@CMC suspension was a homogenous morphology with a spherical shape, regular dispersion and good stability. Furthermore, the multicomponent SiO(2)@Cu@CMC NPs showed good antifungal activity against Phytophthora capsici (P. capsici). The novel Cu NPs-based multicomponent suspension is a key compound in the development of new fungicides for the control of the Phytophthora disease.