Antibacterial study of ZnO and Zn0.5Mg0.5O nanoparticles synthesized by co-precipitation method

In the present study, zinc oxide (ZnO) and magnesium doped zinc oxide (Zn0.5Mg0.5O) nanoparticles were synthesized by simple and cost-effective co-precipitation method. The synthesized materials were characterized by X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM) with Energy dispersive X-ray spectrum (EDAX). Finally, the effect of magnesium (Mg) doping on the structural, morphological and anti-bacterial property of ZnO nanoparticles was analyzed. From the XRD results, it was found that there was a formation of hexagonal structured ZnO and the average crystallite size of ZnO and Zn0.5Mg0.5O was calculated to be 71 nm and 36 nm respectively. The FTIR analysis confirmed the existence of possible functional groups in ZnO and Zn0.5Mg0.5O. There was formation of almost spherical shaped particles as evident from FESEM images and agglomeration of particles was observed upon doping Mg into ZnO. The EDAX spectra of the prepared nanoparticles provided the composition of Zn, O in ZnO and Zn, Mg, O in Zn0.5Mg0.5O. No other elements have been found in the EDAX spectra of ZnO and Zn0.5Mg0.5O that confirmed the formation of pure materials. Finally the anti-bacterial study demonstrated that ZnO and Zn0.5Mg0.5O was effective in inhibiting E. coli bacteria.