The adsorption of phenol in waste water by silver nanoparticles is facilitated via surface interaction . The AgNPs provide a high surface area to volume ratio, which allows phenol molecules in waste water to be adsorbed on the surface of AgNPs . The attraction of phenol molecules in aqueous environment also depends on the surface charge of AgNPs which is often modified by stabilizers or surfactants such as sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), triton X-100 (non-ionic), polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) . This is often governed by:  Va nder Waals Force: These are weak intermolecular forces between phenol molecules and AgNPs which helps in the adsorption of phenol molecules onto AgNPs .  π-π Interaction: Phenol and its derivatives consist of aromatic rings which can interact with the metallic surface of AgNPs via π-electron closed interaction .  Hydrogen bonding: Phenolic hydroxyl (-OH) group may form hydrogen bonds with hydroxylated AgNPs and form weak coordinated complexes . The oxygen atom in hydroxyl group (-OH) acts as a donor, binding to silver ions, which provides stability and retention of phenol on nanoparticles surface .