Deep Eutectic Green Solvent Mediated Design of Irregular Shape Palladium Nanostructure: a Potent Photocatalyst

Our work presents an integrated green nanotechnology for fabrication of Pd nanostructure (NS) utilizing the most environmentally benign and cost-effective green solvent, deep eutectic solvent (DES), of choline chloride and citric acid. The DES acts as stabilizing agent during the reduction of Pd (IV) to Pd (0) particles by NaBH 4 Characterization of the as tailored particles via transmission electron microscope manifested the formation of intricate irregular branched shaped Pd NS owing to the fusion among smaller Pd spherical particles of size 15 - 40 nm. The ensuing Pd particles were perfectly crystalline with high purity. These appealing irregular shaped Pd NS were competent to photodegrade 85% of 6.67×10 -3 ppm toxic fungicide hexaconazole during 21 hr and 71.86% of 1.6×10 -5 M methylene blue (MB) dye in just 2 hr in aqueous medium. Photocatalytic feature of the Pd NS was reckoned mainly on its efficient potential to generate hydroxyl reactive species upon irradiation with light.