Surface functionalized silver-doped ZnO nanocatalyst: a sustainable cooperative catalytic, photocatalytic and antibacterial platform for waste treatment
Sagar Vikal, Yogendra K. Gautam, Swati Meena, Vijay Parewa, Ashwani Kumar, Ajay Kumar, Sushila Meena, Sanjay Kumar, Beer Singh
Abstract
) under visible light and ∼85% in 4 h under dark conditions. Up to five successive treatment cycles using the 4 wt% Ag-doped ZnO NP nanocatalyst confirmed its reusability, as it was still capable of degrading ∼86% and 82% of the dye under visible light and dark conditions, respectively. This limits the risk of nanotoxicity and aids the cost-effectiveness of the overall treatment process. The synthesized NPs showed antibacterial activity in a dose-dependent manner. The zone of inhibition of the Ag-doped ZnO NPs was higher than that of the pure ZnO NPs for all doping content. The studied Ag-doped ZnO NPs thus offer a significant eco-friendly route for the effective treatment of water contaminated with synthetic dyes and fecal bacterial load.