Facile synthesis of N doped ZnO Coral bundles for enhanced photocatalytic and antimicrobial activity

Abstract

An efficient single-step facile synthesis of coral bundle-like nanocrystalline N-doped ZnO was developed using (NH4)2CO3 as a source of nitrogen. The method of zinc nitrate addition and concentration of ammonium carbonate (3.5 mol/L) played a pivotal role in the formation of coral bundle-like morphology along with nitrogen doping and change in color of the prepared nanomaterial. XPS, Raman, and the peak broadening in XRD confirmed the presence of nitrogen in the crystal lattice. An enhanced absorbance in the UV-visible DRS spectrum predicts the visible light- and UV light-induced photocatalytic activities for the degradation of organics via a radical mediated mechanism as evidenced by EPR analysis. The results evidence the particle size (9-12 nm), morphology (coral bundle like), surface roughness (33.87 nm), and surface area (44.028 m2/g) of the prepared coral bundle-shaped nitrogen-doped zinc oxide (CBSNZ) photocatalyst. CBSNZ showed a twofold increase in visible light photocatalytic activity when compared to ZnO and excellent antimicrobial properties when compared to the standard streptomycin and ketoconazole. The MIC for CBSNZ was very less when compared to the standards for “Salmonella typhimurium, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterobacter aerogenes.” This provides a wider application of CBSNZ as an environmentally benign nanomaterial.