An Easy and Single-Step Biosynthesis of WO3 with High Photocatalytic Degradation Activity for Dye Degradation

Azza A Al-Ghamdi; Reema H Aldahiri; Elham A Alzahrani; Naha Meslet Alsebaii; Sumbul Hafeez; Shafiul Haque; Poonam Dwivedi; Seungdae Oh

doi:10.3390/nano15131036

An Easy and Single-Step Biosynthesis of WO₃ with High Photocatalytic Degradation Activity for Dye Degradation

Nanomaterials (Basel). 2025 Jul 3;15(13):1036. doi: 10.3390/nano15131036.

Authors

Azza A Al-Ghamdi¹, Reema H Aldahiri¹, Elham A Alzahrani², Naha Meslet Alsebaii³, Sumbul Hafeez^{4

5}, Shafiul Haque^{6

7}, Poonam Dwivedi⁸, Seungdae Oh⁹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Chemistry, College of Science, University of Jeddah, Jeddah 21959, Saudi Arabia.
² Department of Chemistry, College of Science, University of Ha'il, Ha'il 81451, Saudi Arabia.
³ Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80200, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia.
⁴ Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Villanova University, Villanova, PA 19085, USA.
⁵ Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Hauz Khas, New Delhi 110016, India.
⁶ Department of Nursing, College of Nursing & Health Sciences, Jazan University, Jazan 82911, Saudi Arabia.
⁷ School of Medicine, Universidad Espiritu Santo, Samborondon 091952, Ecuador.
⁸ Department of Chemistry, Ramjas College, University of Delhi, Delhi 110007, India.
⁹ Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering, Kyung Hee University, Yongin 17104, Republic of Korea.

PMID: 40648743
DOI: 10.3390/nano15131036

Abstract

In the present study, a photodegradation technique was employed for the removal of methylene blue dye from aqueous solution using a tungsten oxide-based photocatalyst. The photocatalyst was synthesized via a green synthesis route utilizing a plant extract (PE) under acidic conditions. The synthesized photocatalyst was characterized by various spectroscopic and microscopic techniques that confirmed the presence of various functional groups on the catalyst surface and revealed a narrow bandgap of ~3.0 eV. The synthesized particles exhibited a nanoscale dimension ranging from 10 to 15 nm. The photocatalytic activity of the material was evaluated under ultraviolet light, visible light, and sunlight irradiation, demonstrating the efficient degradation of methylene blue under all light sources. Furthermore, catalysis reusability studies indicated excellent stability, with consistent photocatalytic performance observed after five successive cycles.

Keywords: WO3; dye; methylene blue; photocatalyst; photodegradation; water.