Visible-Light Driven Degradation of Tetracycline Hydrochloride Using Zirconia Nanoparticles as Photocatalysts

In the present study, the synthesis of three types of zirconia nanoparticles was attempted using zirconium oxychloride octahydrate as a precursor and three pure phytochemicals viz. quercetin hydrate, catechin hydrate, and gallic acid as a stabilizer and reducing agent. The prepared materials were characterized using absorption and emission spectroscopy, FTIR, Powder XRD, HR-TEM, SAED, and Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy. Photoluminescence measurements suggest a low band-gap of 2.95 eV in the case of catechin hydrate and quercetin hydrate-derived NPs, while gallic acid-mediated NPs exhibited a comparatively high band-gap of 3.05 eV. The prepared NPs were found to be polygonal in shape having sizes in the range of 17 to 58 nm with an average crystallite size of similar to 26 nm, 22 nm, and 17 nm for catechin hydrate, quercetin hydrate, and gallic acid-derived particles respectively. These particles were employed as photocatalysts for the degradation of tetracycline hydrochloride (TCH) under visible light. The prepared zirconia nanocatalyst showed excellent photocatalytic activity for the photodegradation of TCH, specifically, the complete degradation of TCH was observed when 25 mg of catechin hydrate-derived ZrO2 NPs were employed for 60 min under visible light (60 W).

Automated summary

This study attempted to synthesize three types of zirconia nanoparticles using zirconium oxychloride octahydrate as a precursor and quercetin hydrate, catechin hydrate, and gallic acid as stabilizers and reducing agents. The nanoparticles showed promising photocatalytic activity for the degradation of tetracycline hydrochloride under visible light, with complete degradation observed in the case of catechin hydrate-derived particles.