Malays. J. Anal. Sci. Volume 29 Number 1 (2025): 1065

 

Research Article

 

Optimization of ZnO nanoparticles size using response surface methodology and its effect on antibacterial properties

 

Norlin Pauzi, Norashikin Mat Zain*, and Norazwina Zainol

 

Faculty of Chemical and Process Engineering Technology, Universiti Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah, Lebuhraya Tun Razak, 26300 Gambang, Kuantan, Pahang Darul Makmur, Malaysia.

 

*Corresponding author: shikin@umpsa.edu.my

 

Received: 27 November 2023; Revised: 13 September 2024; Accepted: 4 December 2024; Published: 23 February 2025

 

Abstract

The antibacterial activity of safe and sustainable zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles has huge potential in tackling antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections, especially for nano-green biomedical purposes. Various chemical methods in ZnO nanoparticles synthesis require sophisticated equipment and produce toxic as by product. It is very important to eliminate the biological risks to ensure they are safe and not display unexpected side effects. In this study, ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized using a precipitating technique with the aid of a microwave heating method.  Zinc nitrate had been used as salt, sodium hydroxide (NaOH) as a reducing and precipitating agent, and gum arabic as a stabilizing agent. All the parameters in synthesizing ZnO nanoparticles, which include zinc salt concentration, NaOH concentration, microwave power, and microwave irradiation time were statistically optimized to achieve the smaller size of ZnO nanoparticles; the optimization was analysed using Response Surface Methodology (RSM) based on a statistical design of experiments (DOE). The optimum ZnO nanoparticle of 66.87 nm was achieved using gum arabic of 1.01%, 0.05 M zinc nitrate, 1.46 M NaOH, 8 min of microwave irradiation time, and 275 W of microwave heating. The ZnO nanoparticles' size showed 3.8-fold higher than the values before optimization. The optimized ZnO nanoparticle performs better in killing Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli.

 

Keywords: ZnO nanoparticles, gum arabic, response surface methodology, antibacterial

 

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