Facile biosynthesis and characterization of palm pollen stabilized ZnO nanoparticles

•ZnO NPs were biosynthesized using palm pollen grain.•The method is a simple, rapid, ecofriendly and economic route.•The new bionanocomposite can be beneficial for drug delivery and cosmetic.

In the present study, zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) were successfully prepared by a simple, cost effective and environmental friendly producer using palm pollen (PP) grain. The palm pollen played two important roles: it could act as a reaction media for the formation of ZnO and as a stabilizer. FESEM analysis shows that the zinc oxide nanoparticles prepared were polydispersed with average particle size less than 20 nm. The UV–vis reflection spectrum of the PP stabilized ZnO NPs (PP/ZnO NPs) exhibits relevant increase in the reflectance at the wavelength more than 360 nm which was attributed to the band gap of the ZnO NPs. Stretching and bending vibrations from FTIR analysis ensured proteins present in PP involved in formation and stabilization of ZnO NPs. The results showed that palm pollen is a suitable reaction media and stabilizer in the green technique and this method is a suitable and facile method to prepare ZnO NPs for bio-medical productions.