Development and characterization of ZnO nanoparticles incorporated diosgenin@chitosan nanocomposite for enhanced photocatalytic and antibacterial applications

• Synthesized ZnO nanoparticle-infused diosgenin/chitosan nanocomposite for photodegradation and antibacterial applications. • The ZnO/Dio@CS nanocomposite has significant antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli . • The synthesized ZnO/Dio@CS nanocomposite exhibited exceptional photodegradation of Brilliant Green (BG) and Indigo Carmine (IC). The development of new nanomaterials with versatile functions is both a highly sought-after and challenging endeavor. The synthesis, characterization, and prospective application of the ZnO/Dio@CS nanocomposite for photocatalytic and antibacterial properties are presented in this work. Dio@CS and ZnO were mixed in an ionic gelation procedure to create the nanocomposite. Characterization of the ZnO/Dio@CS nanocomposite using XRD, FTIR, FESEM, UV-vis spectroscopy and XPS confirmed its structural, morphological, and functional characteristics. These investigations have shown that the uniform dispersion of Dio@CS NPs within the nanocomposite improves the photocatalytic activity's endurance. Importantly, when ZnO, and ZnO/Dio@CS's antibacterial activity was demonstrated against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus , substantial inhibitory effects were noted. A comparison of its UV photodegradation efficiency was conducted to assess the nanocomposite's capabilities. It was discovered that the organic dyes like Brilliant Green (BG) dye and Indigo Carmine (IC) dye had experienced significant photocatalytic degradation. Brilliant Green (BG) and Indigo Carmine (IC), two poisonous dyes, were used to evaluate the photocatalytic effectiveness of ZnO/Dio@CS. The photocatalytic degradation of BG and IC dyes using ZnO and ZnO/Dio@CS nanocomposite under UV light resulted in 80.72% and 81.2% elimination of Brilliant Green, and 86.08% and 88.04% removal of Indigo Carmine at 60 minutes, respectively. According to the acquired data, the ZnO/Dio@CS nanocomposite shows promise as an effective photocatalytic and antibacterial agent for wastewater treatment.