Green engineering of titanium dioxide nanoparticles using Ageratina altissima (L.) King & H.E. Robines. medicinal plant aqueous leaf extracts for enhanced photocatalytic activity

In the present study, the titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2 NPs) were synthesized by using Ageratina alttissima (L.) King & H.E. Robines. (White Snakeroot) medicinal plant aqueous leaf extracts by microwave irradiation method. The green synthesized TiO2 NPs showed the best photocatalyst due to its long thermodynamic stability and strong oxidizing power. The synthesized titanium dioxide nanoparticles were characterized by using UV-visible spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-Ray diffraction (XRD), Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and Energy dispersive X-Ray analysis (EDX). FTIR was performed to identify the possible functional biomolecules capped on the surface of TiO2 NPs during interaction. In XRD result, the dominant peak of TiO2 2 theta value is matched with the crystallographic rutile structure which indicates the polycrystalline nature. FESEM analysis revealed the spherical shape and size of the synthesized TiO2 NPs. In this study, the degradation process of textile dyes was carried by photocatalytic activity using synthesized TiO2 NPs. The photocatalytic activity of the synthesized TiO2 NPs showed enhanced percentage of decoloring of textile dyes such as methylene blue (86.79 %), alizarin red (76.32 %), crystal violet (77.59 %), and methyl orange (69.06 %). The findings of this study clearly indicated that the synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles A. alttissima be used as an alternative and eco-friendly compound to remove and degrade the pollutants released from textile and dyeing industries.