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Abstract
In this work, the rapid extracellular biofabrication of CuO nanoparticles (CONPs) was performed through microwave irradiation (MI) using rosehip extract. Not any hazardous reagents were employed during the fabrication period. The as-synthesized CONPs were characterized using XRD, SEM, EDS, antioxidant activity and FT-IR. The CONPs were crystalline and had average sizes about to 20–40 nm according to SEM. This methodology has the advantages of elimination of any chemical surfactants, simple rout and easy work up. The formation mechanism of CONPs was detected, for the first time, by marginal decrease in pH, potentiometric data, XRD and FTIR techniques. Moreover, CONPs as nano-photocatalyst could effectively photodegrade 4-nitrophenol as an environmental pollutant. The degradation rate is about 88% (for 20 ppm of catalyst) in 120 min under Vis irradiation. It demonstrated that the bio-capping had not any retarding effect during photodegradation. This fabrication protocol opens the windows for a large-scale and green approach for generating other metal oxide that are useful as nano-photocatalyst.