A novel approach toward the bio-inspired synthesis of CuO nanoparticles for phenol degradation and antimicrobial applications

Nanotechnology has been a widespread field for the last decade, but the clean and sustainable development of nanomaterials is a stimulating task for researchers in the current situation. The green synthesis of nanomaterial using plant extract is the most practiced chore of researchers, but the use of inorganic and organic bases makes them valueless. Herein, we first report the biogenic synthesis of copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) using human urine as a reducing agent. The XRD analysis confirmed the crystalline nature and synthesis of CuO NPs, where the grain size was found to be 6.78 nm. The absorption-desorption study of human urine-mediated synthesized CuO NPs was done with the BET technique, and the pore volume and surface area were found to be 0.06 cm(3)/g and 92.64 nm, respectively. Finally, the spherical morphology was confirmed by SEM analysis, and elemental analysis confirmed the formation of CuO NPs using human urine. The well-characterized CuO NPs were used for the eco-friendly degradation of phenol in aqueous media under sunlight, and the removal efficiency was recorded using a spectrophotometer. The antibacterial activity of synthesized CuO NPs was tested against gram-positive and gram-negative pathogenic bacteria. Also, the antifungal activity was verified against different fungal strains.

Automated summary

Nanotechnology is a widely studied field, and the clean and sustainable development of nanomaterials is currently a challenging task. The green synthesis of nanomaterials using plant extract is common, but the use of inorganic and organic bases limits their value. In this study, copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) were synthesized using human urine as a reducing agent. The resulting CuO NPs were characterized and used for the eco-friendly degradation of phenol and showed antibacterial and antifungal activities.