Biogenic synthesis, characterization and photocatalytic activity of cerium nanoparticles for treatment of dyes contaminated water

Abstract

In this study, Murraya Koenigii leaf extract mediated cerium oxide nanoparticles (Ce-NPs) were synthesized using an eco-friendly approach. The surface morphology, elemental composition, surface functional groups, crystal structure and thermal stability of the synthesized Ce-NPs were examined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-Ray diffraction (XRD) and thermogravimetric (TGA) analysis. The synthesized Ce-NPs were evaluated for their photocatalytic activity with respect to degradation of methylene blue dye (MBD) and acid orange-7 dye (AO7D) aqueous solution in the presence of sunlight. The dye degradation activity of the developed Ce-NPs was analyzed by the analysis of absorbance in treated and untreated aqueous dyes solution using UV–Vis spectrophotometer. The result of the study inferred that Ce-NPs have promising photocatalytic degradation ability (>98 %) for both AO7D and MBD (concentration = 10 mg L−1 of each dye) within 100 min exposure to sunlight.