Ultrasonic assisted preparation of some new zinc complexes of a new tetradentate Schiff base ligand: thermal analyses data, antimicrobial and DNA cleavage potential

Abstract

AbstractA new tetradentate Schiff base ligand (L) (L = obtained by condensation reaction between triethylenetetraamine and (E)‐3‐(2‐nitrophenyl)acrylaldehyde) and some of its zinc (II) complexes formulated as ZnLX2 in which X = halide/pseudohalide were synthesized and characterized by some physical and spectral techniques such as infra‐red (IR), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), UV–Visible, microanalyses, and conductivity measurements. Among the complexes, zinc chloride, iodide, and nitrate complexes were also prepared as nanostructure powder under sonication conditions confirmed by x‐ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy dispersive x‐ray analysis (EDAX). Moreover, zinc oxide nanoparticles were prepared by direct thermolysis of nanopowder of ZnLI2 complex under air atmosphere. Moreover, the thermal behaviors of the compounds were studied based on thermo‐gravimetric (TG)/differential thermal gravimetric (DTG)/differential thermal analyses (DTA) analyses data under nitrogen atmosphere. Furthermore, antibacterial/antifungal activities of the ligand and its zinc complexes were screened by the well diffusion method against some bacteria and funguses. Ultimately, the DNA cleavage potential of the compounds was evaluated by gel electrophoresis technique.