Enhanced structural, adsorption, and antibacterial properties of ZnO nanoparticles

Abstract

This study focuses on the development of pure and doped zinc oxide by sol-gel method synthesis using various weight concentrations of dopant (1, 2, 3, and 4 wt%). The scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction based on structural and morphological analyses were performed. The synthesized nanoparticles retained the wurtzite hexagonal structure. From TEM studies, pure and doped ZnO showed a nanorod like morphology. The maximum adsorption capacity of pure and doped ZnO nanoparticles for Pb(II) was found to be 27.4 mg g−1 at 328 K. This study was also done to look for the antibacterial potentials of pure and doped zinc oxide nanoparticles. The bacterial growth concentration of pure and doped ZnO nanoparticles was 4000 μg/ml. Results showed that the doped ZnO possessed a greater antibacterial effect than the pure ZnO.