RETRACTED ARTICLE: Eco-friendly synthesis of ZnO nanoparticles and ZnO@PVA nanofibers for enhanced hydrogen generation and CO₂ conversion

The demand for sustainable energy has accelerated the development of clean hydrogen production and CO₂ conversion into valuable products. This research explores the eco-friendly synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) utilizing Calotropis procera leaf extract, and their incorporation into polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) nanofibers through electrospinning yielded composite nanomaterials with improved photocatalytic properties. Characterization using UV-Visible spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis confirmed the successful synthesis and structural integrity of the materials. The ZnO@PVA nanofibers exhibited a significant reduction in bandgap energy (2.85 eV) compared to ZnO NPs (3.35 eV), contributing to superior photocatalytic performance. The XRD analysis revealed that the average crystal sizes of the ZnO@PVA nanofibers and pure ZnO nanoparticles were 24 nm and 20 nm, respectively. Catalytic experiments demonstrated that ZnO@PVA nanofibers achieved a high CO₂ conversion rate of 97.54% and produced 16.28 mmol/g of hydrogen, outperforming ZnO NPs. These results (97.54% CO₂ conversion and 16.28 mmol/g hydrogen production) show that the green-synthesized nanoparticles have promising applications in sustainable energy and environmental remediation.