Photocatalytic and biological applications of Ag and Au doped ZnO nanomaterial synthesized by combustion

Zinc oxide (ZnO) doped with noble metals (Ag, Au) at a concentration of 2 mol% have been synthesized by combustion. The effect of Ag and Au doping on the photocatalytic efficiency (degradation of methylene blue dye) and antimicrobial/fungal effectiveness of these novel materials has been investigated. X-ray diffraction analysis showed that the structure of ZnO was not altered after doping with the noble metals. Scanning electron microscopy investigations revealed that the dopants aggregated into nanoparticles with different sizes in the ZnO matrix. Both doped materials have shown promising photocatalytic results. Although the doped samples generally exhibited poorer antibacterial properties than pure ZnO, the effectiveness of Ag-doped ZnO against the yeast Eremothecium ashbyii was improved. In general, doping with Ag rather than Au produced better results for photocatalytic and biological applications of ZnO.