Hydrothermal synthesis of flower-like ZnO-SiO₂ nanocomposites for solar light–induced photocatalysis and anti-bacterial applications

A simple and novel hydrothermal method has been described for the synthesis of ZnO-SiO₂ nanocomposites. The synthesized nanocomposites along with pure zinc oxide and silica were characterized using powder x-ray diffraction, UV–visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscope, and energy dispersive x-ray analysis. The characterization results indicated the formation of ZnO-SiO₂ nanocomposites with flower-like morphology. The nanocomposites have been demonstrated as better photocatalysts for the degradation of Rhodamine B under solar light irradiation, when compared to pure ZnO nanoparticles. Furthermore, the nanocomposites were evidenced to possess better anti-bacterial activities towards gram positive and gram negative bacteria, when compared to pure ZnO nanoparticles. (paper)