Synthesis and characterization of MgO nanostructures: A comparative study on the effect of preparation route

In this study, MgO nanostructures were synthesized by five facile and diverse chemical synthesis routes, viz. precipitation (PT), sonication-precipitation (SPT), microwave combustion (MWC), conventional combustion (CC), and solvothermal (ST) processes. The influence of aforementioned synthesis routes on crystallinity, crystallite size, morphology, optical, and surface traits of MgO nanostructures was evaluated by XRD, BET, FESEM, FETEM, optical absorption, steady-state and time-resolved photoluminescence analyses. Furthermore, antioxidant and antibacterial properties of MgO nanostructures were examined. XRD analysis revealed that crystallite size and relative crystallinity (%) of MgO varied from 9 to 42 nm and 90.70–99.06%, respectively, depending on the synthesis route followed. The application of microwave irradiation (MWC) and sonication (ST) reduced particle size and increased specific surface area of MgO nanostructures compared to nanostructures obtained via CC and PT methods. This could be due to faster reaction kinetics in MWC and small-scale turbulence generated during sonication that restricts growth and agglomeration of nuclei during nanostructure synthesis. FESEM analysis revealed flake, sphere, natural rose, and marigold flower-like morphologies of MgO due to different methods followed, that can be attributed to the differences in nanostructure formation mechanism involved. The highest photoluminescence intensity observed with MgO synthesized via MWC is likely to produce a maximum number of reactive oxygen species. Consequently, MgO synthesized through MWC process showed highest bactericidal and antioxidant activities compared to MgO synthesized via other routes. Thus, present study demonstrated that properties of nanostructures required for a particular application could be customized by proper choice of the synthesis route.