Effect of Benzalkonium Chloride on Properties of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles Synthesized through Sol-Gel Technique

Abstract

In the present study, to synthesize controllable sized metal oxide particles, benzalkonium chloride (BAK) as cationic surfactant was added to zinc oxide (ZnO) nanostructures synthesis at room temperature using sol–gel method. The effect of cationic surfactant BAK concentrations, on the optical properties, size, and morphology of ZnO nanoparticles synthesized through sol–gel method was studied. The characterization of ZnO nanostructures was occurred using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), ultraviolet–visible near infrared (UV-Vis) spectrophotometer, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). ZnO nanostructures shape and size were revealed by SEM and TEM. The hexagonal (wurtzite structure) of ZnO was confirmed by an X-ray diffractogram. The bandgap energy of the prepared ZnO samples was determined by UV-Vis spectrophotometer. FTIR analyzed the presence of functional groups.