<i>Garcinia mangostana</i> L. Leaf-Extract-Assisted Green Synthesis of CuO, ZnO and CuO-ZnO Nanomaterials for the Photocatalytic Degradation of Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME)
Yu Bin Chan,
Mohammod Aminuzzaman,
Yip Foo Win,
Sinouvassane Djearamane,
Ling Shing Wong,
Samar Kumar Guha,
Hamad Almohammadi,
Md. Akhtaruzzaman,
Lai-Hock Tey
Affiliations
Yu Bin Chan
Department of Chemical Science, Faculty of Science, University Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), Kampar Campus, Jalan University, Bandar Barat, Kampar 31900, Perak, Malaysia
Mohammod Aminuzzaman
Department of Chemical Science, Faculty of Science, University Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), Kampar Campus, Jalan University, Bandar Barat, Kampar 31900, Perak, Malaysia
Yip Foo Win
Department of Chemical Science, Faculty of Science, University Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), Kampar Campus, Jalan University, Bandar Barat, Kampar 31900, Perak, Malaysia
Sinouvassane Djearamane
Department of Allied Health Science, Faculty of Science, University Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), Kampar Campus, Jalan University, Bandar Barat, Kampar 31900, Perak, Malaysia
Ling Shing Wong
Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, INTI International University, Nilai 71800, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia
Samar Kumar Guha
Department of Arts and Sciences, Faculty of Engineering, Ahsanullah University of Science and Technology, 141-142, Love Road, Tejgaon I/A, Dhaka 1208, Bangladesh
Hamad Almohammadi
Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Islamic University of Madinah, Madinah 42351, Saudi Arabia
Md. Akhtaruzzaman
Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Islamic University of Madinah, Madinah 42351, Saudi Arabia
Lai-Hock Tey
Department of Chemical Science, Faculty of Science, University Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), Kampar Campus, Jalan University, Bandar Barat, Kampar 31900, Perak, Malaysia
The treatment of palm oil mill effluent (POME) poses a significant challenge for Malaysia’s palm oil industry, necessitating compliance with the Department of Environment (DOE) regulations prior to discharge. This study introduces an eco-friendly synthesis method utilizing mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana L.)-leaf aqueous extract to fabricate copper oxide (CuO), zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles (NPs), and their nanocomposite (CuO-ZnO NCs). The physicochemical properties of these nanomaterials were characterized using various analytical tools and their effectiveness in reducing the chemical oxygen demand (COD) of palm oil mill effluent (POME) was assessed under the illumination of two types of light sources: monochromatic blue- and polychromatic white-light emitting diodes (LEDs). CuO-ZnO NCs demonstrated superior performance, with the lowest energy bandgap (1.61 eV), and achieved a COD removal efficiency of 63.27% ± 0.010 under blue LED illumination, surpassing the DOE’s discharge limit of 100 mg/L. This study offers a cost-effective and environmentally friendly method for synthesizing heterojunction materials, which show great potential as photocatalysts in reducing POME COD to permissible levels for discharge.