Gompherna globosa flower extract-driven ZnO nanoparticles for enhanced antimicrobial and photocatalytic properties

Abstract

The aqueous extract of Gomphrena globosa flowers was utilized for the first time as an effective capping and reducing agent for the synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs). The synthesized nanoparticles were examined using x-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Energy dispersive x-ray analysis (EDAX), Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) and UV–vis spectroscopy. XRD revealed the single-phase wurtzite structure of ZnO nanoparticles with a P63mc space group with an average size of 23 nm. The band gap of synthesized ZnO nanoparticles was determined as 3.16 eV from UV–vis spectroscopy. The rod-shaped structure of the synthesized ZnO NPs was revealed by SEM. The presence of the elements Zn & O was confirmed by EDAX. TEM and SAED confirmed that the average particle size was 26 nm and that the material was polycrystalline. The bio-inspired ZnO NPs achieved outstanding degradation activity of 95.4% against Malachite Green dye after 20 min of UV illumination. The antibacterial properties of the green synthesized nanoparticles were assessed in relation to gram-positive (Staphylococcus sp., Bacillus sp.,) and gram-negative (E. coli, Klebsiella sp.) bacteria. ZnO nanoparticles possess strong antifungal property against a pathogenic fungus Aspergillus niger. This study shows that green-synthesized ZnO nanoparticles derived from Gomphrena globosa flower extract are recommended for use in anti-microbial and photocatalytic applications.