Multifunctional properties of microwave assisted CuO/Cu2O-ZnO mixed metal oxide nanocomposites

The bimetallic CuO/Cu 2 O-ZnO nanocomposites (NCs) were synthesized using Ipomoea carnea leaf extract. The Cu and Zn were mixed in ratios of 90:10, 80:20, 70:30, and 60:40, and the mixture was heated under controlled microwave conditions (2.45 GHz and 700 W). Various spectroscopic techniques were used to characterize the synthesized samples. The XRD patterns confirmed crystallinity, and the size of the synthesized CuO/Cu 2 O-ZnO NCs was estimated to be in the range of 7–24 nm. SEM images showed well-defined star, spherical, and flower-like shapes, while TEM analysis revealed the size of the NCs to be between 8–50 nm. The presence of elemental and organic compositions was confirmed by EDX and FTIR analysis. The energy band gaps ranged between 1.47–2.9 eV, while the stability of the CuO/Cu 2 O-ZnO NCs was found to be in the range of − 15.7 to − 26.9 mV based on zeta potential values. XPS analysis confirmed the purity of the synthesized materials. Antibacterial activity against human pathogens, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Bacillus subtilis , was demonstrated using the well diffusion method. Additionally, the 90:10 CuO/Cu 2 O-ZnO NCs exhibited high photocatalytic degradation efficiency for methyl orange (96.45%) and methylene blue (98.96%) dyes within 45 min. However, the maximum antioxidant activity (99.77%) was observed in the case of 60:40 CuO/Cu 2 O-ZnO NCs.