Photocatalytic performance and antibacterial efficacy of green synthesized MgO nanoparticles using Cymbopogan Citratus

The current study describes an easy, enviro safe, affordable, and time-saving method to produce Magnesium Oxide (MgO) nanoparticles employing the leaf extract of Cymbopogon citratus (Lemon grass) as a reducing and capping agent. X-ray diffraction spectroscopy (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL), and   UV-visible studies were used to characterize the nanoparticles. SEM and TEM analysis of nano MgO revealed that agglomerated particles had nearly spherical morphologies, and the average crystalline size was 25 nm, according to the XRD investigation. The bandgap of the synthesized nanoparticles was calculated to be 3.7 eV using a Tauc plot from the UV-visible spectrum. The photocatalytic degradation of the crystal violet (CV) dye in the presence of sunlight was tested, and antibacterial activity was thoroughly investigated for both the Gram-negative (Escherichia Coli) and Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) pathogens utilizing the MgO nanoparticles. The engineered MgO nanoparticles exhibited excellent utility potential for the photocatalytic degradation of the mentioned dye and antibacterial activity against the two pathogens.