Hydrothermal Green Fabrication of CuO Nanoparticles Using Merremiaquinquefolia: Physicochemical Characteristics, Visible-Light Photocatalytic Kinetics, and Multifunctional Bioactivity

Abstract

In this paper the green hydrothermal method is proposed to synthesize CuO nanoparticles with the Merremiaquinquefolia extract as a plant-based functional media. The framework explores the effect of CuO formation under varying concentrations of extract and hydrothermal temperature on the physicochemical properties. Plant phytochemicals are thought to play an important role in the nucleation, growth and surface stabilization of nanoparticles. Structural characterization is based on crystallite size with the target value being in the range of ~25nm. The photocatalytic degradation of visible-light and DPPH radical-scavenging activity are used as functional assessment. The photocatalytic activity of the material is evaluated by pseudo-first-order kinetic method, and the degradation efficiency is targeted to be close to 93% after 90 min of irradiation. Evaluation of antioxidant activity is done at the different concentrations of CuO and a target value of 82% inhibition of DPPH is considered. The framework integrates hydrothermal conditions, nanoscale characteristics, photocatalytic performance and the antioxidant response to establish relationships among them and lay the foundation for future environmental remediation and multifunctional material applications.