Green synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles from Rhododendron arboreum extract and their potential applications in photocatalytic degradation of cationic dyes malachite green and Fuchsin basic dye

Hereby, in this paper, we have reported synthesis of uniform spherical-shaped nanoparticles of zinc oxide via green method, as well as their photocatalytic activity. The nanoparticles of zinc oxide were synthesized utilizing flower extract of Rhododendron arboreum where it performs the function of reducing as well as capping agent. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized by numerous spectroscopic techniques such as UV–Vis and FT-IR. Scanning electron microscope analysis of product revealed spherical zinc oxide nanoparticles. Energy-dispersive spectral analysis indicated elemental composition, i.e., oxygen and zinc. The green synthesized zinc oxide nanoparticles have been employed as nanocatalyst for photocatalytic degradation of two cationic dyes, i.e., Fuchsin basic and Malachite green dye. In addition, various physicochemical parameters such as effect of the dye concentration, catalyst dosage and pH have also been optimized indicating better performance of these nanoparticles. Zinc oxide nanoparticles showed 99.18% degradation of Malachite green dye and 99.272% degradation of Fuchsin basic dye. These nanoparticles have great potential candidate as developing catalyst for selective degradation of cationic dyes.