GREEN SYNTHESIS OF ZINC OXIDE NANOPARTICLES FROM LEMON PEEL EXTRACT AND THEIR ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY

This research project aimed to study the extraction of flavonoids from lemon peels using different solvents, namely deionized water (DI water), isopropanol, ethanol, and methanol. Among these, DI water yielded the highest amount of flavonoids. The extracted compounds were then utilized for the synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) through a green chemical method. Various amounts of lemon peel extract (10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 ml) were mixed with Zn(NO3)2 during the synthesis process. The ZnO NPs were characterized using UV-VIS spectrophotometry, X-ray diffractometry (XRD), Fourier transform-infrared spectrometry (FT-IR), and Raman spectrometry. The results revealed successful synthesis of ZnO NPs, except for those produced using DI water extract, which exhibited a different structure (wurtzite). Subsequently, the antibacterial properties of the ZnO NPs were tested against Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Escherichia coli (E. coli) using the disc diffusion method. The ZnO NPs synthesized from different solvent extracts demonstrated effective inhibition zones against both bacterial strains, indicating their potential as antibacterial agents.