Green Synthesis of Nickel Oxide Nanoparticles using Populus ciliata Leaves Extract and their Potential Antibacterial Applications

ABSTRACT Green synthesis of nanoparticles has received a lot of attention from scientists globally because it is eco-friendly, relatively rapid, and a cost-effective method. This work presents a method for the green synthesis of nickel oxide nanoparticles (NiO-NPs) using leaf extracts of Populus ciliata as a reducing and stabilising agent. The synthesised NiO-NPs were characterised by ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. It was found that the synthesised NiO-NPs shapes varied, were highly crystalline, and had a face-centred cubic geometry. The calculated crystallite size of the synthesised nanoparticles was 44 nm. Moreover, the antibacterial activity of the synthesised NiO-NPs was also conducted against Gram-positive bacteria (Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus licheniformis) and Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae). Bacillus subtillus showed a maximum inhibition zone of 28.1±1.6 mm, whereas Klebsiella pneumonia showed a minimum inhibition zone of 9.2±0.5 mm. It was also found that the antibacterial activity increased with an increase in the concentration of NiO-NPs. Keywords: antibacterial activity, green synthesis, nanoparticles, NiO, Populus ciliata.