Chitosan-Entrapped TiO2 Nanoparticles Synthesized Using Calendula officinalis Flower Extract—Photophysical Characterization, Biocompatibility, and Textile Dye Remediation

Effluents from industries, manufacturing companies, textile looms, and floodwater contaminate the surface water reservoirs. This endangers the quality of water for use by humans. Wastewater remediation is one of the ways to recycle the dirty water and make it suitable for use. Photocatalysis is the most common method for wastewater remediation, especially using Titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles. However, chemical synthesis and direct addition of nanoparticles may cause toxicity to the flora and fauna present in the water body. To address this limitation, we have green-synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles using a horticulture waste, Calendula officinalis dried flower extract and entrapped them in a natural polymer, chitosan (CTS-TiO2-CO nanocomposite). The polymer entrapment ensures biocompatibility as well as reduced aggregation of nanoparticles. The synthesized CTS-TiO2-CO nanocomposite was characterized using UV-visible spectrophotometry, dynamic light scattering, zeta potential, Fourier Transformed Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffractometry (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDAX) analysis. The absorption peak was found at 302 nm, and the hydrodynamic diameter at 490 nm. SEM images show flower-like morphology with 326 nm average particle diameter. The non-toxic dose of the nanoparticles was estimated by MTT assay and zebrafish embryo developmental studies. More than 82% fibroblast cells were viable after treatment with 100 μg/mL of CTS-TiO2-CO nanocomposite. 85% embryos hatched after treatment with 50 μg/mL of CTS-TiO2-CO nanocomposite. Further, the textile dye remediation assessment was done using the dye crystal violet, exhibiting 69.19% dye degradation after 4 h of sunlight exposure. Altogether, the results demonstrate that the CTS-TiO2-CO nanocomposite was effective in the remediation of crystal violet without causing any toxicity up to a dose of 100 μg/mL.