Probing into the physicochemical consequences of pristine and X0.06Ni0.94O (X = Co, Fe, Cu) nanoparticles for bactericidal, antifungal and hemolytic competency

Abstract

Nano-scaled transition metal oxides are massively gaining an exciting horizon of research interest among material scientists by triggering scientific attention due to its prime advancements in physico-chemical, magneto-optical, electro-chemical, bio-medical and bio-compatible characteristics. The current work highlights the fabrication and formalisation of pure and X0.06Ni0.94O (X = Co, Fe, Cu) nanoparticles via bottom-up sol-gel pathway employing citric acid as the gelling factor. The crystallite size evaluated from X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis decreased with respect to doping were estimated by successive systems among which Halder-Wagner (H-W) and Wagner-Agua (W-A) approach delivered prime results. Fourier Transform Infra-Red (FTIR) spectroscopy analysis regulated at room temperature in the mid infrared frequency continuum 400–4000 cm−1 confirmed the cubic conformation and the presence of predicted functional groups in the as-synthesized nanoparticles. The bandgap energy calculated from Ultra Violet-visible (UV–vis) spectroscopy is found to decrease for Co-NiO and Cu-NiO nanoparticles and increased for Fe doped NiO nanoparticles in comparison with the bandgap of pure NPs reasoned out by the Burstein-Moss shift. The device dependent parameter Urbach energy, and other pivotal optical parameters crucial in the fabrication of optoelectronic devices were evaluated. Surface morphological features and porous network of doped nanoparticles were investigated from Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) technique. Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectra ascertained the molecular matrix array and elemental composition in synthesized samples. The surface area measured from Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analysis revealed higher surface area (42 m2/g) for Fe-doped NiO nanoparticles than other counterparts. The thermal decomposition and stability of the pure and doped samples were analysed by Thermo-Gravimetric (TG) studies. The fundamental kinetic and thermodynamic parameters such as entropy, enthalpy, activation and Gibb’s free energy were elucidated through six different models viz., Coats-Redfern (CR), Piloyan-Novikava (PN), Horowitz-Metzger (HM), Van-Krevelen (VK), MacCallum-Tanner (MT) and Broido methods. Vibrating Sample Magnetometer (VSM) analysis coupled with the Law of Approach to Saturation (LAS) operandi extracted two critical magnetic criteria and the saturation magnetization is noticed to reduce with doping. The antibacterial and antifungal efficacies of the as-synthesized NPs were deeply discussed by portraying the nanoparticles-microbes interface. Iron and copper doped nickel oxide nanoparticles encountered favorable antimicrobial activity against pathogenic organisms. Furthermore, the bio-compatibility nature of the NPs was examined through hemolytic activity and the samples exhibited non-toxic behavior towards human cells till 50 μg/ml.