Zahra Solati

In this study, N-CQD coated ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized using CMC polymer as a carbon source and urea as a nitrogen source. Hydrothermal, precipitation, and a combination of hydrothermal and precipitation methods were used for these syntheses. XRD results showed that the synthesized samples have a hexagonal wurtzite crystal structure and the nanoparticles measured smaller crystallites by the hydrothermal synthesis method compared to the combined method. . FE-SEM results showed that the zinc oxide nanoparticles synthesized by the hydrothermal process are composed of spherical particles that have accumulated in a plate-like manner, while no plate-like morphologies were observed by the combined precipitation and hydrothermal method. Also, the photocatalytic activity of these synthesized nanoparticles for the removal of methylene blue dye was investigated under sunlight irradiation. All nanoparticles synthesized under hydrothermal conditions showed high photocatalytic activity under sunlight irradiation, which could be due to their morphology and wet surface.