Physical properties of multifunctional TM-doped ZnO nanorods and their photocatalytic and anti-bacterial activities.

Dilute magnetic semiconductor ZnCuO (x = 0, 1.5, 3.0, and 4.5%) nanorods were prepared by hydrothermal method. The impact of dopant concentration on the physical properties was investigated along with the anti-bacterial and photocatalytic activities. Synthesis of ZnO nanorods was confirmed by the characteristic band at 380 nm in UV-Visible spectra of the synthesized samples. A red shift in absorbance spectra was observed from 380 to 465 nm with an increase in dopant concentration. The hexagonal wurtzite geometry and rod-like morphology of Cu-doped ZnO nanorods having an average size of 29 nm were confirmed by X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), respectively. An increase in the crystallinity of the material was observed with an increase in the dopant (Cu) ratio without any alteration in geometry. EDX analysis was used to confirm the purity of samples. FTIR spectra were recorded to explore the functional group present in samples. The hysteresis loop drawn by a vibrating-sample magnetometer (VSM) was utilized to analyze the ferromagnetic behavior. As-synthesized pure and Cu-ZnO nanorods were evaluated for their photocatalytic behavior for the photodegradation of methyl orange (MO) dye. ZnCuO with x = 4.5%, pH 3, and catalyst dosage of 0.5 g has shown the maximum efficiency. Results elucidated > 81% degradation of MO dye with a rate constant (k) value of - 1.930 × 10 min in just 90 min of exposure to a visible light source. ZnO nanorods have also exhibited anti-bacterial potential against gram-positive and gram-negative strains of bacteria. However, smaller size nanorods were found more effective to suppress the growth of gram-negative bacteria. A slight decrease (11%) in catalytic potential was observed in the 5th cycle during recycling and reuse experiments.