Green synthesis, characterization of Ag2O doped ZnO nanoparticles using aqueous extract of Croton macrostachyus leaf for photo degradation, and antioxidant activities

This study investigates the synthesis, characterization, antioxidant properties, and photo degradation of nanoparticles made from zinc oxide that has been doped with silver oxide (Ag2Odoped ZnO NPs). The reactions utilized Croton macrostachyus leaf plant extract as reducing, stabilizing, and capping agents, while silver sulfate and zinc acetate dihydrate served as precursors. The characterization of the reactions was conducted using selected area (electron) diffraction (SAED), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), powder x-ray diffraction (PXRD), fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and UV-visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis). The present study validated the findings that Ag2O doped ZnO nanoparticles, possessing a nanorod-like morphology, have enhanced photocatalytic and anti-oxidant properties. Additionally, the particle size ranges from 16 nm to 23 nm. The photocatalytic efficiency of ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) doped with 10 % and 5 % Ag2O was evaluated by measuring their ability to degrade methylene blue (MB) dye in natural sunlight for duration of 60 min. This material undergoes sustainable photo degradation when exposed to direct solar irradiation, resulting in a significant deterioration rate of over 95 % for a doped sample. The scavenging activities for undoped ZnO nanoparticles were 55 %. However, for ZnO nanoparticles doped with 5 % and 10 % Ag2O, the scavenging activities were improved to 83 % and 94 % respectively, as measured by DDPH scavenging. The experimental results demonstrated that the 10 % Ag2Odoped ZnO nanoparticles exhibited the greatest degrading efficiency. This can be attributed to a reduction in the band gap energy, which decreased from 3.21 eV to 2.95 eV.