Synthesis, characterization and antibacterial study of zinc oxide nanoparticles

Introduction: In this paper, zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) were synthesized by the sol-gel technique.Materials and Methods: In order to characterize the nanoparticles that were synthesized, the following techniques were employed: Ultraviolet-Visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray Diffraction (XRD), and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). These methods were utilized to determine the nanoparticles' optical behavior, functional groups, crystalline structure, morphology, and particle size distribution.Results: The ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) study confirmed the existence of a characteristic absorption peak in the vicinity of 360-380 nanometers, which in turn evidences that the fabrication of zinc oxide nanoparticles (NPs) was successful. Furthermore, the patterns that were seen in the X-ray diffraction (XRD) investigation provided evidence of the hexagonal wurtzite crystalline structure. The transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images revealed that the nanoparticle showed a spherical in the nanoscale. In order to evaluate the antibacterial properties of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains, including Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, the agar well diffusion and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) assays were utilized. The generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), the release of zinc ions, and the direct interaction of ZnO nanoparticles with the membranes of microorganisms are considered to be the factors that contribute to the rise in antibacterial activity.Conclusion: According to the basis of results, zinc oxide nanoparticles possess the capacity to function as effective antibacterial agents in most cases. As a consequence of this, there are a number of different fields in which they could be applied in the future, such as biomedical devices, coatings, food packaging, and environmental disinfection systems, among others.