MoO₃ nanoparticle anchored graphene as bifunctional agent for water purification

We report here a facile one step hydrothermal method to anchor MoO₃ nanoparticles in graphene. The bifunctionality of graphene-MoO₃ nanoparticles is demonstrated via dye adsorption and antibacterial activities. The nanocomposite showed excellent adsorption of methylene blue, a cationic dye, from water compared to pristine MoO₃ and graphene. However, it showed negligible adsorption of methyl orange, an anionic dye. Again, the graphene-MoO₃ nanoparticles exhibited bacteriostatic property against both Gram-negative ( E. coli ) and Gram-positive ( S. aureus ) bacteria. (paper)