Nature inspired Ficus Religiosa leaf mesh coated with antibacterial ZnO/PANi@PMMA nanocomposite for separation and water purification

Abstract

In this article, we fabricate a nature inspired Ficus religiosa leaf mesh with a micro/nano hierarchical structure utilizing the ZnO/PANi@PMMA nanocomposite having exceptional hydrophobic and oleophilic characteristics, with a water contact angle of ∼130° and an oil contact angle of ∼2°, respectively. Different oil/water mixtures were subsequently separated using the mesh, and after 8 cycles, the separation efficiency was ∼96.86 ± 0.8% for gasoline. In contrast, the reported mesh carries antibacterial properties and has successfully degraded the methylene orange (MO) dye solution in 140 min with ∼91% efficiency in the presence of sunlight, envisioning its potential use in water purification applications.

Keywords

• Ficus religiosa
• Leaf mesh
• Oil/water separation
• Photocatalytic application
• Nanocomposites
• Antibacterial