Effective investigation of electro-catalytic, photocatalytic, and antimicrobial properties of porous CuO nanoparticles green synthesized using leaves of Cupressocyparis leylandii

Abstract

In this study, green copper oxide nanoparticles (G-CuO NPs) were successfully synthesized using a green co-precipitation method employing natural reducing agents from Cupressocyparis leylandii leaf extracts. Characterization of the biosynthesized G-CuO NPs using SEM-EDS, XRD, UV, and FTIR techniques revealed a spherical structure with a crystallite size of 17.09 nm and a bandgap energy of 3.24 eV, confirming the successful synthesis of high-quality CuO nanoparticles. The electrochemical properties of the prepared G-CuO NPs modified carbon paste electrode (G-CuO-MCPE) were investigated for the detection of Methyl Orange (MO) using the cyclic voltammetric method. A 2 mg G-CuO-MCPE exhibited a significant current sensitivity of 60.5 µA at pH 7.2, which is at least seven times higher than that of the bare carbon paste electrode (BCPE). The effect of different G-CuO-MCPE concentrations, pH values, scan rates, and MO concentrations on electrochemical detection was also investigated. Additionally, the antibacterial activity of G-CuO NPs against Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis bacteria, and the photocatalytic activity of G-CuO NPs synthesized biosynthetically on the degradation of Methylene Blue (MB) dye under simulated sunlight irradiation were evaluated. The G-CuO NPs demonstrated high antibacterial activity against both Gram-negative (E. coli) and Gram-positive (B. subtilis) bacteria. Acting as a catalyst, G-CuO degraded 92.3 % of MB dye under solar irradiation