Harshitha V, Suresh D
Department of Studies and Research in Organic Chemistry, Jnanasiri Campus, Tumkur University, Bidarakatte, India.
Department of Chemistry, University College of Science, Tumkur University, Tumakuru, India.
Microsc Res Tech. 2025 Jul 27. doi: 10.1002/jemt.70050.
Development of multifunctional heterostructured nanocomposites has received significant attention recently due to their potential applications. In this study, multifunctional zirconium dioxide (ZrO) Praseodymium doped zirconium dioxide (Pr-ZrO) and Praseodymium doped zirconium dioxide decorated reduced graphene oxide (Pr-ZrO/rGO) composites were synthesized using a solution combustion method incorporating Manilkara zapota (M. zapota) fruit juice as a biotemplate. The synthesized nanomaterials were characterized using various analytical techniques, including FTIR, PXRD, UV-DRS, Raman spectroscopy, SEM with EDX, and TEM. Following 60 min of irradiation, the methylene blue (MB) degradation efficiencies of the ZrO, Pr-ZrO, and Pr-ZrO/rGO photocatalysts were found to be 3.38%, 8.02%, and 96.63%, respectively. The photocatalytic degradation efficiency showed a slight decrease from 97% ± 2% in the first cycle to 87% ± 3% by the fifth cycle. The Pr-ZrO/rGO nanocomposite displays a significantly reduced photoluminescence (PL) intensity relative to both Pr-ZrO and pristine ZrO, indicating more efficient separation of photogenerated charge carriers. Pr-ZrO/rGO showed well-defined ridges with highly resolved minute patterns when the latent fingerprints were detected. The Pr-ZrO/rGO nanocomposite exhibited inhibition zones of 12.66 mm against Escherichia coli and 9.33 mm against Staphylococcus aureus. The half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC) values for the inhibition of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical by ZrO, Pr-ZrO, and Pr-ZrO/rGO were determined to be 4346, 4282, and 4173 μg/mL, respectively. The electrochemical studies showed that the solution resistance (R) of the ZrO electrode was measured at 145.24 Ω, while the Pr-ZrO electrode demonstrated a reduced resistance of 109.95 Ω. Incorporation of Pr into the crystal lattice has reduced the crystallite size and energy gap of ZrO, contributing to its improved characteristics. Reduced graphene oxide offers porosity and conductivity to the photocatalyst and helps in better charge separation. Therefore, this study introduces a novel approach for synthesizing a multifunctional Pr-ZrO/rGO nanohybrid material with potential applications in photoluminescence, latent fingerprint detection, photocatalytic dye degradation, as well as antibacterial and antioxidant activities.
近年来，多功能异质结构纳米复合材料因其潜在应用受到了广泛关注。在本研究中，采用溶液燃烧法，以人心果（M. zapota）果汁作为生物模板，合成了多功能二氧化锆（ZrO）、镨掺杂二氧化锆（Pr-ZrO）以及镨掺杂二氧化锆修饰的还原氧化石墨烯（Pr-ZrO/rGO）复合材料。使用包括傅里叶变换红外光谱（FTIR）、粉末X射线衍射（PXRD）、紫外可见漫反射光谱（UV-DRS）、拉曼光谱、带能谱分析的扫描电子显微镜（SEM）以及透射电子显微镜（TEM）等多种分析技术对合成的纳米材料进行了表征。经过60分钟的辐照后，发现ZrO、Pr-ZrO和Pr-ZrO/rGO光催化剂对亚甲基蓝（MB）的降解效率分别为3.38%、8.02%和96.63%。光催化降解效率从第一个循环的97%±2%略有下降，到第五个循环时为87%±3%。相对于Pr-ZrO和原始ZrO，Pr-ZrO/rGO纳米复合材料的光致发光（PL）强度显著降低，表明光生电荷载流子的分离更有效。当检测潜在指纹时，Pr-ZrO/rGO显示出轮廓清晰的脊线和高度清晰的微小图案。Pr-ZrO/rGO纳米复合材料对大肠杆菌的抑菌圈为12.66毫米，对金黄色葡萄球菌的抑菌圈为9.33毫米。ZrO、Pr-ZrO和Pr-ZrO/rGO对2,2-二苯基-1-苦基肼（DPPH）自由基抑制的半数抑制浓度（IC）值分别测定为4346、4282和4173μg/mL。电化学研究表明，ZrO电极的溶液电阻（R）为145.24Ω，而Pr-ZrO电极的电阻降低至109.95Ω。将镨掺入晶格中减小了ZrO的微晶尺寸和能隙，有助于改善其性能。还原氧化石墨烯为光催化剂提供了孔隙率和导电性，并有助于更好地进行电荷分离。因此，本研究引入了一种合成多功能Pr-ZrO/rGO纳米杂化材料的新方法，该材料在光致发光、潜在指纹检测、光催化染料降解以及抗菌和抗氧化活性方面具有潜在应用。
