Sol-gel synthesis and antibacterial study on BC/ZnO/TiO₂ nanocomposite treated by DC glow discharge plasma

Abstract

Nanocomposite material of bamboo charcoal (BC), zinc oxide (ZnO), and titanium dioxide (TiO₂) has prepared via sol–gel method. The synthesized nanocomposite surface was modified by a DC glow discharge plasma treatment. Characterization methods such as BET, SEM, XRD, FTIR, UV, and EDAX are utilized to examine the presence of all the three materials and their combination structure. The combined and plasma-modified surface structure of the bamboo charcoal/zinc oxide/titanium dioxide (BC/ZnO/TiO₂) nanocomposite has shown by microscopic images in step by step. The phase structure of the prepared nanocomposite has been identified by X-ray diffraction and the crystalline size of the composite falls between 20 and 30 nm. The antibacterial behavior of the prepared nanocomposite was assessed through disk diffusion plate method and best antibacterial performance was observed. The metal oxides and plasma treatment increased the property of the synthesized nanocomposite and also the results gave extended results compared to BC/ZnO and BC/TiO₂ in all formats.

Keywords:

• Bamboo charcoal
• ZnO
• sol–gel method
• plasma surface modification
• antibacterial activity