Catalytic-assisted remediation and phytotoxicity evaluations of organic pollutants in the presence of metal-doped Bi2O3-based NPs catalyst.

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The chemical co-precipitation method was used to synthesize a variety of pure Bi2O3 and substituted Bi2-2xCoxCdxO3 NPs (x=0.0-0.8) and doping influences were evaluated based on the optical, photocatalytic, morphological, and structural characteristics. Powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and UV-visible techniques were used to explore the characteristics of the synthesized Bi2O3-based NPs. XRD measurements confirmed the monoclinic structure and a P21/c space group, whereas the particle size was between 22 and 41nm. The SEM analysis gives the morphology of the synthesized NPs that were diverse and agglomerated platelets, whereas the EDX measurements provide the presence of Co and Cd in Bi2-2xCoxCdxO3 NPs. Additionally, FTIR investigations confirmed the existence of functional groups in Bi2-2xCoxCdxO3 NPs. The ultraviolet-visible absorbance region displaying a considerable red shift allowed for tuning of the band gap from 2.64 to 2.37eV. By analyzing the degradation of Reactive Black 5 (RB-5) dye in the presence of sunlight, pure Bi2O3 NPs showed 65.04% whereas the substituted Bi2-2xCoxCdxO3 NPs demonstrated enhanced photodegradation (86.40%) in 105min. For the degradation of RB-5 dye, the effects of catalyst dosage, dye concentration, and pH variations were studied as well. The phytotoxicity experiment was also performed by comparing the germination of Triticum aestivum seeds in treated and untreated RB-5 dye. In the untreated dye solution, seed germination was 50% inhibited, and in the treated dye solution, germination was observed to be 80%. Additionally, recycling investigations were used to confirm the stability of these fabricated nanoparticles, and the results showed that nanomaterials exhibited significant stability and reusability. Co and Cd-doped Bi2O3 NPs are promising solar-active photocatalysts for dye removal from wastewater applications because of their improved photocatalytic activity and narrow bandgap.