Silver-coated zinc oxide nanoantibacterial synthesis and antibacterial activity characterization

In this article, a precipitation method is investigated to prepare nanoscale zinc oxide (ZnO) as the precursor of silver coated antibacterial nanocomposite. Subsequently, silver loaded zinc oxide nanocomposites (ZnO/Ag) are prepared by hydrolysis method. The average diameters and morphology of ZnO nanocomposites before and after silver loaded were compared. The results showed that the zinc oxide powder presented good dispersibility and uniform size a average diameter of 170 nm. Silver was coated on the precursor successfully, and the diameter of ZnO nanocomposites increased slightly. Silver loaded ZnO showed strong antibacterial activity on Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), the inhibition zone diameter in 15.2mm and 20.8 mm respectively.