Green synthesis of titanium dioxide nanoparticles using a deep eutectic solvent-based extract of Prunus spinosa L. for photocatalytic degradation of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid

In this study, polyphenol-rich extract obtained from Prunus spinosa L. fruit using choline chloride/lactic acid (1/ 1) deep eutectic solvent was used as reducing, stabilizing and capping agent in the green synthesis of TiO2 nanoparticles (TiO2-NPs). The extraction system using a homogenizer was optimized using the Response Surface Methodology (RSM). The conditions providing the highest efficiency for total phenolic content (40.885 mg-GAE/ g-FF) and antioxidant activity (86.22%) were determined as 46.179% (v/v) water ratio to DES, 1.478 g sample amount and 65.513 s extraction time. UV–Vis DRS, PL, SEM-EDX, HR-TEM-EDX, FTIR, XRD, DLS, and Zeta Potential analyses revealed that the TiO2-NPs had a band gap of 2.8 eV, a spherical morphology, nanosize, and high crystalline purity. Comparative DLS and zeta potential analyses of aqueous extract and DES-based systems showed that the DES-based environment yields smaller and more stable TiO2-NPs. Furthermore, TiO2-NPs showed notable antioxidant activity, with an IC50 value of 52.4 μg/mL. The TiO2-NPs were utilized as photo catalysts to degrade 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D). Photocatalytic tests showed the highest efficiency, achieving 66.9% degradation of an 80 mg/L 2.4-D solution with 50 mg of TiO2-NPs at pH 5.5 within 120 min. The photocatalyst remained stable after three cycles. A nanomaterial has been sustainably created using an extremely environmentally friendly method for photocatalytic pollutant destruction.