Hybrid Advances (Dec 2023)
Green synthesis of gold-titania nanoparticles for sustainable ciprofloxacin removal and phytotoxicity evaluation on aquatic plant growth
Abstract
This study presents an eco-friendly method of synthesis plasmonic gold-titanium (TiO2@Au) nanoparticles, which exhibit enhanced photocatalytic degradation of ciprofloxacin under visible light. The treated effluent was then used to cultivate aquatic plants such as Pistia stratiotes, commonly referred to as water lettuce. In order to verify the success of the synthesis of the green plasmonic gold-titania nanoparticles, various spectroscopic techniques were utilized, including UV–Visible, Raman, Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR), Powder X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Energy Dispersive X-ray (XPS), and microscopic Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) analysis. It is apparent from these images that these nanoparticles, with a diameter of about 10 ± 5 nm, are uniformly distributed on the surface of the TiO2 Anatase nanoparticles. Under visible light conditions, the nanocomposite removes 95 % of a high concentrated solution of ciprofloxacin, as demonstrated the UV–Vis spectrum. The phytotoxicity for one (01) week of the treated effluents demonstrated that the effluent is not harmful for the aquatic plant growth in comparison to the 50 ppm ciprofloxacin solution which exhibits abnormal plant growth. Based on literature reports and observed phenomena, the study also presents a plausible mechanism for the phenomenon.
