Zr-doped hydroxyapatite nanorods from cockle shell and study on photocatalyst activity and cytotoxicity

In this research, synthesis of nanorod zirconium-doped hydroxyapatite (Zr-HAp) was developed by using cockle (Anadara granosa) shell. The existing work demonstrated the successful synthesis of nanomaterial using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide as templating agent by hydrothermal method. Characterization by using x-ray diffraction and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed the single phase of hydroxyapatite without any impurities with Ca/P of 1.62. From scanning electron microscope and transmission electron microscope analyses, the material exhibited nanorod forms with particle size of 50 nm, and from the diffuse reflectance UV–Visible spectrophotometry analysis, the calculated band gap energy was 2.92 eV. The physicochemical properties of Zr-HAp support the capability as photocatalyst as shown by the high activity to degrade tetracycline by complete removal efficiency for 120 min of treatment. The material showed stability and reusability without any significant change in degradation efficiency and initial rate until 10th cycles of usage. In term of potency in biomimetic, MTT assay on Zr-HAp showed an excellent cytocompatibility and could be used safely in biomedical applications.