Facile green synthesis of photoresponsive ZnO/CDs with Lithocarpus pachylepis extract and their antibacterial activity

Abstract

In this study, ZnO/carbon quantum dots (ZnO/CDs) with enhanced visible light response and photothermal properties were prepared by green synthesis using Lithocarpus pachylepis extract as biological reductants and stabilizers. Compared with pure ZnO, the optimized composite had better solar energy harvesting capacity, which made it could degrade 98 % methylene blue within 40 min. Meanwhile, the photocatalytic stability of the composites was validated by cycling tests. More importantly, ZnO/CDs composites can effectively kill bacteria under the synergistic action of photothermy and photocatalysis. This green synthesized photoresponsive ZnO/CDs composites have broad application prospects in the photocatalytic and antibacterial fields, which provide new ideas and strategies to solve the problems of environmental pollution and public health.