Investigation of the structural, optical, photocalitical and antibacterial properties of ZnO nanoparticles produced with sol-gel

In this study, ZnO-NPs were produced using the sol-gel technique. For the physical characterization of these particles, their structural, morphological and optical properties were made using X-ray diffractometry (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM), UV-VIS spectroscopy, respectively. As a result of X-ray diffraction analysis, it was determined that the synthesized nanoparticles were in hexagonal wurtzite structure. Some structural parameters such as crystallization level, cleft width and grain size were determined. Optical properties of nanoparticles such as band gap, Urbach energy, and refractive index and extinction coefficient values were calculated using absorption and transmittance spectra. Surface morphologies and elemental analyzes were investigated using FESEM and EDS. In addition, agar disc diffusion method was used for its biological properties. Five different test microorganisms (Escherichia coli, Candida albigans, Streptococcus mutans, Listeria monocytogenes, Eosinophilic pneumonia) were used for antibacterial applications and the antibacterial activity of ZnONPs against these bacteria was determined. In addition, the photocatalytic activities of ZnONPs were tested for cleaved methylene blue in aqueous solution and the degradation test was performed at different time intervals using UV-VIS spectrophotometer. As a result of the catalyst effect of ZnONPs, the photocatalytic efficiency was determined as 80%.