Designing of Te-doped ZnO and S-g-C₃N₄ /Te-ZnO nano-composites as excellent photocatalytic and antimicrobial agents

Today, it is crucial but challenging to develop a narrow bandgap photo-catalyst that can eliminate contaminants when exposed to visible light. In this work, we synthesized the ZnO, Te-doped ZnO, and s-g- C₃N₄ assisted Te-doped ZnO nanoparticles by a susceptible and economical co-precipitation method. Different techniques were employed to characterize the compounds like XRD confirms the formation of pure wurtzite phase present within ZnO nanoparticles. The morphology of produced nanoparticles was studied using FESEM, which reveals that ZnO nanoparticles develop into spherical particles whereas doped particles take the form of nano-sheets with a regular hexagonal pattern. The FT-IR and UV visible spectrum was used to measure the functional groups and optical properties of compounds. The doped compound shows the maximum efficiency of degradation against methylene blue dye under sunlight exposure. Furthermore, E. coli and S. aureus were used as test subjects for the antibacterial activity of these synthetic compounds. On the other hand, the greatest antifungal activity of S-g-C₃N₄/Te-ZnO against C. albicans was calculated to be 44.6 mm, and 26.5 mm against E. salmonicolor. Te-doped ZnO nanoparticles with the aid of S-g-C₃N₄ showed remarkable photocatalytic and antimicrobial activities.