Sonochemical synthesis and physical properties of Co0.3Ni0.5Mn0.2EuxFe2-xO4 nano-spinel ferrites

Multi-stimuli-responsive chitosan-functionalized magnetite/poly(ε-caprolactone) nanoparticles as theranostic platforms for combined tumor magnetic resonance imaging and chemotherapy

Chitosan-functionalized magnetite/poly(ε-caprolactone) nanoparticles were formulated by interfacial polymer disposition plus coacervation, and loaded with gemcitabine. That (core/shell)/shell nanostructure was confirmed by electron microscopy, elemental analysis, electrophoretic, and Fourier transform infrared characterizations. A short-term stability study proved the protection against particle aggregation provided by the chitosan shell. Superparamagnetic properties of the nanoparticles were characterized in vitro, while the definition of the longitudinal and transverse relaxivities was an initial indication of their capacity as T2 contrast agents. Safety of the particles was demonstrated in vitro on HFF-1 human fibroblasts, and ex vivo on SCID mice. The nanoparticles demonstrated in vitro pH- and heat-responsive gemcitabine release capabilities. In vivo magnetic resonance imaging studies and Prussian blue visualization of iron deposits in tissue samples defined the improvement in nanoparticle targeting into the tumor when using a magnetic field. This tri-stimuli (magnetite/poly(ε-caprolactone))/chitosan nanostructure could find theranostic applications (biomedical imaging & chemotherapy) against tumors.

Review on magnetic spinel ferrite (MFe2O4) nanoparticles: From synthesis to application

Magnetic spinel ferrite materials offer various applications in biomedical, water treatment, and industrial electronic devices, which has sparked a lot of attention. This review focuses on the synthesis, characterization, and applications of spinel ferrites in a variety of fields, particularly spinel ferrites with doping. Spinel ferrites nanoparticles doped with the elements have remarkable electrical and magnetic properties, allowing them to be used in a wide range of applications such as magnetic fields, microwave absorbers, and biomedicine. Furthermore, the physical properties of spinel ferrites can be modified by substituting metallic atoms, resulting in improved performance. The most recent and noteworthy applications of magnetic ferrite nanoparticles are reviewed and discussed in this review. This review goes over the synthesis, doping and applications of different types of metal ferrite nanoparticles, as well as views on how to choose the appropriate magnetic ferrites based on the intended application.

Impact of Ga3+ Ions on the Structure, Magnetic, and Optical Features of Co-Ni Nanostructured Spinel Ferrite Microspheres

Co-Ni ferrite is one of the crucial materials for the electronic industry. A partial substitution with a rare-earth metal brings about modification in crystal lattice and broadens knowledge in the discovery of new magnetic material. Current work reports a Ga³⁺ substitution in the Co-Ni ferrite with composition Co_0.5Ni_0.5Fe_2-xGa_xO₄ (where x = 0.0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, and 1.0), herein referred to as spinel ferrite microspheres (CoNiGa-SFMCs). The samples were crystallized hydrothermally showing a hollow sphere morphology. The crystal phase, magnetic, morphology, and optical behaviour were examined using various microscopy and spectroscopic tools. While the XRD confirmed the phase of SFMCs, the crystallite size varied between 9 and 12 nm. The Tauc plot obtained from DRS (diffuse reflectance spectroscopy) shows the direct optical energy bandgap (E_g) of the products, with the pristine reading having the value of 1.41 eV E_g; the band gap increased almost linearly up to 1.62 eV along with rising the Ga³⁺ amount. The magnetic features, on the other hand, indicated the decrease in coercivity (H_c) as more Ga³⁺ is introduced. Moreover, there was a gradual increase in both saturation magnetization (M_s) and magnetic moment (nB) with increasing amount of Ga³⁺ till x = 0.6 and then a progressive decline with increases in the x content; this was ascribed to the spin-glass-like behavior at low temperatures. It was detected that magnetic properties correlate well with crystallite/particle size, cation distribution, and anisotropy.

Impact of Sm3+ and Er3+ Cations on the Structural, Optical, and Magnetic Traits of Spinel Cobalt Ferrite Nanoparticles: Comparison Investigation

In this study, we investigated a comparison of the structure, morphology, optic, and magnetic (room temperature (RT)) features of Er³⁺ and Sm³⁺ codoped CoFe₂O₄ (CoErSm) nanospinel ferrite (NSFs) (x ≤ 0.05) synthesized via hydrothermal (H-CoErSm NSFs) and sonochemical (S-CoErSm NSFs) approaches. The formation of all products via both synthesis methods has been validated by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), along with energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques. The single phase of the spinel structure (except for the Hyd sample with x = 0.03) was evidenced by XRD analysis. The D _XRD (crystallite size) values of H-CoErSm and S-CoErSm NSFs are in the 10-14.7 and 10-16 nm ranges, respectively. TEM analysis presented the cubic morphology of all products. A UV-visible percent diffuse reflectance (DR %) study was performed on all products, and E _g (direct optical energy band gap) values varying in the 1.32-1.48 eV range were projected from the Tauc plots. The data of RT magnetization demonstrated that all prepared samples are ferromagnetic in nature. M-H data revealed that rising the contents of cosubstituent elements (Sm³⁺ and Er³⁺ ions) caused an increase in M _s (saturation magnetization) and H _c (coercive field) in comparison to pristine samples. Although concentration dependence is significant (x > 0.02), no strict regularity (roughly fluctuating) has been ruled out in M _s values for doped samples prepared via the hydrothermal method. However, sonochemically prepared samples demonstrated that M _s values increase with increasing x up to x = 0.04 and then decrease with the further rise in cosubstituent Sm³⁺ and Er³⁺ ions. The calculated values of M _s and H _c were found to be greater in H-CoErSm NSFs compared to those in S-CoErSm NSFs. The present investigation established that the distribution of cations and the variation in crystallite/particle sizes are efficient to control the intrinsic properties of all samples.

Engineered magnetic oxides nanoparticles as efficient sorbents for wastewater remediation: a review

The rapid urbanization and industrialization is causing worldwide water pollution, calling for advanced cleaning methods. For instance, pollutant adsorption on magnetic oxides is efficient and very practical due to the easy separation from solutions by an magnetic field. Here we review the synthesis and performance of magnetic oxides such as iron oxides, spinel ferrites, and perovskite oxides for water remediation. We present structural, optical, and magnetic properties. Magnetic oxides are also promising photocatalysts for the degradation of organic pollutants. Antimicrobial activities and adsorption of heavy metals and radionucleides are also discussed.

Al-Suhaimi E, Hussain M, Yousuf Bari M, Mehmood Ali S, Al-Jameel SS, Slimani Y, Khan FA, Baykal A. Ultrasonic Synthesis and Biomedical Application of Mn0.5Zn0.5ErxYxFe2-2xO4 Nanoparticles

In the present study, biocompatible manganese nanoparticles have been linked with zinc and iron molecules to prepare different derivatives of Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Er_xY_xFe_2-2xO₄ NPs (x = 0.02, 0.04, 0.06, 0.08, 0.10), using an ultrasonication approach. The structure, surface morphology, and chemical compositions of Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Er_xY_xFe_2-2xO₄ NPs were elucidated by X-ray diffractometer (XRD), High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and Energy Dispersive X-Ray Analysis (EDX) techniques. The bioactivity of Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Er_xY_xFe_2-2xO₄ NPs on normal (HEK-293) and (HCT-116) colon cancer cell line was evaluated. The Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Er_xY_xFe_2-2xO₄ NPs treatment post 48 h resulted in a significant reduction in cells (via MTT assay, having an IC₅₀ value between 0.88 µg/mL and 2.40 µg/mL). The specificity of Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Er_xY_xFe_2-2xO₄ NPs were studied by treating them on normal cells line (HEK-293). The results showed that Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Er_xY_xFe_2-2xO₄ NPs did not incur any effect on HEK-293, which suggests that Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Er_xY_xFe_2-2xO₄ NPs selectively targeted the colon cancerous cells. Using Candida albicans, antifungal activity was also studied by evaluating minimum inhibitory/fungicidal concentration (MIC/MFC) and the effect of nanomaterial on the germ tube formation, which exhibited that NPs significantly inhibited the growth and germ tube formation. The obtained results hold the potential to design nanoparticles that lead to efficient bioactivity.

Biosensing platform on ferrite magnetic nanoparticles: Synthesis, functionalization, mechanism and applications

Ferrite magnetic nanoparticles (FMNPs) are gaining popularity to design biosensors for high-performance clinical diagnosis. The fusion of information shows that FMNPs based biosensors require well-tuned FMNPs as detection probes to produce large and specific biological signals with minimal non-specific binding. Nevertheless, there is a noticeable lacuna of information to solve the issues related to suitable synthesis route, particle size reduction, functionalization, sensitivity towards targeted intercellular biological tiny particles, and lower signal-to-noise ratio. Therefore it allows exploring unique characteristics of FMNPs to design a suitable sensing device for intracellular measurements and diseases detection. This review focuses on the extensively used synthesis routes, their advantages and limitations, crystalline structure, functionalization, along with recent applications of FMNPs in biosensors, taking into consideration their analytical figures of merit and range of linearity. This work also addresses the current progress, key factors for sensitivity, selectivity and productivity improvement along with the challenges, future trends and perspectives of FMNPs based biosensors.

Effect of reaction condition on microstructure and properties of (NiCuZn)Fe2O4 nanoparticles synthesized via co-precipitation with ultrasonic irradiation

Nano-spinel ferrites synthesized via chemical co-precipitation method are small in size and have serious agglomeration phenomenon, which makes separation difficult in the subsequent process. Ni0.4Cu0.2Zn0.4Fe2O4 ferrites nanoparticles were synthesized via co-precipitation assisted with ultrasonic irradiation produced by ultrasonic cleaner with 20 kHz frequency using chlorinated salts and KOH as initial materials. The effects of ultrasonic power (0, 40 W, 60 W, 80 W) and reaction temperature on the microstructure and magnetic properties of ferrite nanoparticles were investigated. The structure analyses via XRD revealed the successful formation of pure (NiCuZn)Fe2O4 ferrites nanospinel without any impurity. The crystallites sizes were less than 40 nm and the lattice constant was near 8.39 Å. The TEM showed ferrite particle polygonal. M-H analyses performed the saturation magnetization and coercivity of ferrite nanoparticles obtained at the reaction temperature of 25℃ were higher than at 50℃ with same power. The samples exhibited the highest values of Ms 55.67 emu/g at 25℃ and 47.77 emu/g at 50℃ for 60 W and the lowest values of Hc 71.23 Oe at 25℃ for 40 W and 52.85 Oe at 50℃ for 60 W. The squareness ratio (SQR) were found to be lower than 0.5, which revealed the single magnetic domain nature (NiCuZn)Fe2O4 nanoparticles. All the outcomes show the ultrasonic irradiation has positive effects on improving the microstructure and increasing magnetic properties.

Sonochemical catalysis as a unique strategy for the fabrication of nano-/micro-structured inorganics

Ultrasound-assisted approaches, as an important trend in material synthesis, have emerged for designing and creating nano-/micro-structures. This review simply presents the basic principles of ultrasound irradiation including acoustic cavitation, sonochemical effects, physical and/or mechanical effects, and on the basis of the latest progress, it newly summarizes sonochemical catalysis for the fabrication of nano-structured or micro-structured inorganic materials such as metals, alloys, metal compounds, non-metal materials, and inorganic composites, where the theories or mechanisms of catalytic synthetic routes, and the morphologies, structures, sizes, properties and applications of products are described in detail. In the review, a few technological potentials and probable challenges of sonochemical catalysis are also highlighted for the future advance of synthesis methods. Therefore, sonochemical catalysis or ultrasound-assisted synthesis will serve as a unique strategy to reveal its great significance in material fabrication.

Impact of Tm3+ and Tb3+ Rare Earth Cations Substitution on the Structure and Magnetic Parameters of Co-Ni Nanospinel Ferrite

Tm-Tb co-substituted Co-Ni nanospinel ferrites (NSFs) as (Co0.5Ni0.5) [TmxTbxFe2-2x]O4 (x = 0.00-0.05) NSFs were attained via the ultrasound irradiation technique. The phase identification and morphologies of the NSFs were explored using X-rays diffraction (XRD), selected area electron diffraction (SAED), and transmission and scanning electronic microscopes (TEM and SEM). The magnetization measurements against the applied magnetic field (M-H) were made at 300 and 10 K with a vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). The various prepared nanoparticles revealed a ferrimagnetic character at both 300 and 10 K. The saturation magnetization (Ms), the remanence (Mr), and magneton number (nB) were found to decrease upon the Tb-Tm substitution effect. On the other hand, the coercivity (Hc) was found to diminish with increasing x up to 0.03 and then begins to increase with further rising Tb-Tm content. The Hc values are in the range of 346.7-441.7 Oe at 300 K to 4044.4-5378.7 Oe at 10 K. The variations in magnetic parameters were described based on redistribution of cations, crystallites and/or grains size, canting effects, surface spins effects, super-exchange interaction strength, etc. The observed magnetic results indicated that the synthesized (Co0.5Ni0.5)[TmxTbxFe2-x]O4 NSFs could be considered as promising candidates to be used for room temperature magnetic applications and magnetic recording media.

Synthesis of Dy-Y co-substituted manganese‑zinc spinel nanoferrites induced anti-bacterial and anti-cancer activities: Comparison between sonochemical and sol-gel auto-combustion methods

This study described the beneficial properties of ultrasonic irradiation approach to synthesize the spinel-type Dy-Y co-substituted Mn-Zn nanospinel ferrites (NSFs). We have used two different approaches like citrate sol-gel combustion and ultrasonic irradiation routes to produced series of Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Fe_2-2x(Dy_xY_x)O₄ (0.0 ≤ x ≤ 0.05) NSFs (DyY-MnZn NSFs). The structure and morphology of NSFs X-was examined by using XRD, EDX, SEM and TEM methods. We have found that spinel ferrites and hematite phase in DyY-MnZn NSFs produced by citrate sol-gel, while DyY-MnZn NSFs created by ultrasonic irradiation contain a pure phase of spinel ferrite. TEM analysis revealed the spherical nanoparticles with fairly uniform size. We have also analyzed the biological applications of DyY-MnZn NSFs prepared by both methods (ultrasonication and sol-gel) by examining their anti-cancer and anti-bacterial (Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureu) activities. We have found that both methods produced inhibitory actions on colon cancer cells (HCT-116) and bacterial cells, whereas, no inhibitory action was observed when examined on normal and non-cancerous cells (HEK-293).

Impact of sonochemical synthesis condition on the structural and physical properties of MnFe2O4 spinel ferrite nanoparticles

Herein, we report sonochemical synthesis of MnFe₂O₄ spinel ferrite nanoparticles using UZ SONOPULS HD 2070 Ultrasonic homogenizer (frequency: 20 kHz and power: 70 W). The sonication time and percentage amplitude of ultrasonic power input cause appreciable changes in the structural, cation distribution and physical properties of MnFe₂O₄ nanoparticles. The average crystallite size of synthesized MnFe₂O₄ nanoparticles was increased with increase of sonication time and percentage amplitude of ultrasonic power input. The occupational formula by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy for prepared spinel ferrite nanoparticles was (Mn_0.29Fe_0.42)[Mn_0.71Fe_1.58]O₄ and (Mn_0.28Fe_0.54) [Mn_0.72Fe_1.46]O₄ at sonication time 20 min and 80 min, respectively. The value of the saturation magnetization was increased from 1.9 emu/g to 52.5 emu/g with increase of sonication time 20 min to 80 min at constant 50% amplitude of ultrasonic power input, whereas, it was increased from 30.2 emu/g to 59.4 emu/g with increase of the percentage amplitude of ultrasonic power input at constant sonication time 60 min. The highest value of dielectric constant (ε') was 499 at 1 kHz for nanoparticles at sonication time 20 min, whereas, ac conductivity was 368 × 10^-9 S/cm at 1 kHz for spinel ferrite nanoparticles at sonication time 20 min. The demonstrated controllable physical characteristics over sonication time and percentage amplitude of ultrasonic power input are a key step to design spinel ferrite material of desired properties for specific application. The investigation of microwave operating frequency suggest that these prepared spinel ferrite nanoparticles are potential candidate for fabrication of devices at high frequency applications.

Synthesis and biological characterization of Mn0.5Zn0.5EuxDyxFe1.8-2xO4 nanoparticles by sonochemical approach

Metallic nanoparticles (NPs) possess unique properties which makes them attractive candidates for various applications especially in field of experimental medicine and drug delivery. Many approaches were developed to synthesize divers and customized metallic NPs that can be useful in many areas such as, experimental medicine, drug design, drug delivery, electrical and electronic engineering, electrochemical sensors, and biochemical sensors. Among different metallic nanoparticles, manganese (Mn) NPs are the most prominent materials, in the present study, we have synthetized unique Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Dy_xEu_xFe_1.8-2xO₄ NPs by using ultrasonication method (x ≤ 0.1). The structure, and surface morphology of Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Dy_xEu_xFe_1.8-2xO₄ NPs was characterized by XRD, SEM, TEM and EDX methods. We have examined the biological effects of Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Dy_xEu_xFe_1.8-2xO₄ NPs on both normal (HEK-293) and cancerous (HCT-116) cells. We have found that the treatment of Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Dy_xEu_xFe_1.8-2xO₄ NPs post 48 h, showed significant decline in cancer cells population as revealed by MTT assay. The IC₅₀ value of Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Dy_xEu_xFe_1.8-2xO₄ NPs was ranged between (2.35 μg/mL to 2.33 μg/mL). To check the specificity of the actions, we found that the treatment of Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Dy_xEu_xFe_1.8-2xO₄ NPs did not produce any effects on the normal cells, which suggest that Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Dy_xEu_xFe_1.8-2xO₄ NPs selectively targeted the cancerous cells. The anti-bacterial properties of Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Dy_xEu_xFe_1.8-2xO₄ NPs were also evaluated by MIC and MBC assays. We suggest that Mn_0.5Zn_0.5Dy_xEu_xFe_1.8-2xO₄ NPs produced by sonochemical method possess potential anti-cancer and anti-bacterial capabilities.

Ni0.4Cu0.2Zn0.4TbxFe2-xO4 nanospinel ferrites: Ultrasonic synthesis and physical properties

The Fe³⁺ ions were replace with Tb³⁺ ions as highly paramagnetic rare earth element within the structure of Ni_0.4Cu_0.2Zn_0.4Fe₂O₄ nano-spinel ferrites (NSFs). The structural, magnetic, spectroscopic and optic properties have been studied in details. All products have been synthesized via ultrasonic approach via Qsonica ultrasonic homogenizer, frequency: 20 kHz and power: 70 W for 60 min. No annealing or calcination process was applied for any product. The microstructural analysis of products has been done via X-ray powder diffractometry (XRD) which presented the cubic spinel structure with nanosized distribution of all. The cubic morphology of all products were confirmed by both HR-TEM and FE-SEM. Optical band gap (E_g) values were assessed by applying %DR (percent diffuse reflectance) analysis and Kubelka-Munk theory. The Tauc schemes showed that E_g values are in a narrow range (1.87-1.98 eV). The quadrupole splitting, line width, hyperfine magnetic field, isomer shift values and cation distribution have been determined from ⁵⁷Fe Mossbauer analysis. The magnetic properties of various nanoparticles have been obtained from VSM (vibration sample magnetometer) measurements at 10 and 300 K (RT). The magnetic results revealed superparamagnetic and soft ferromagnetic traits at 10 and 300 K, respectively. M_s (saturation magnetization) and M_r (remanence) initially increase with increasing Tb³⁺ substituting level up to x = 0.06 then diminish for further x values. H_c (coercivity) shows an opposite variation tendency of M_s and M_r. The observed magnetic traits are deeply discussed in relation with the structure, morphology, magnetic moments and cation distributions.

Impact of La3+ and Y3+ ion substitutions on structural, magnetic and microwave properties of Ni0.3Cu0.3Zn0.4Fe2O4 nanospinel ferrites synthesized via sonochemical route

In the current study, Ni_0.4Cu_0.2Zn_0.4La_xY_xFe_2−xO₄ (x = 0.00 − 0.10) nanospinel ferrites (NSFs) were fabricated via an ultrasonic irradiation route. The creation of single phase of spinel nanoferrites (NSFs) was investigated by X-ray powder diffractometry (XRD) and selected area diffraction pattern (SAED). The cubic morphology of all samples was confirmed by scanning and transmission electron microscopies (SEM and TEM) respectively. The UV-Vis investigations provided the direct optical energy band gap values in a narrow photon energy interval of 1.87–1.92 eV. The ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy analysis explained that the hyperfine magnetic fields of Octahedral (Oh) and Tetrahedral (Td) sites decreased with substitution. The paramagnetic properties of NPs decrease with increase of content of doped ions. Investigations of magnetic properties reveal a superparamagnetic nature at 300 K and soft ferromagnetic trait at 10 K. The M_s (saturation magnetization) and M_r (remanence) decrease and the H_c (coercivity) increases slightly with La³⁺ and Y³⁺ substitution. The observed magnetic traits are deeply discussed in relation with the morphology, structure, magnetic moments and cation distributions. The microwave characterization of the prepared NSFs showed that, dissipation (i.e., absorption) of incoming microwave energy occurs at a single frequency, for each sample, lying between 7 and 10.5 GHz. The reflection losses (RL) at these frequencies range from −30 to −40 dB and the mechanism of which is explained in the framework of dipolar relaxation and spin rotation. The best microwave properties were obtained with a LaY concentration of x = 0.08 having an RL of −40 dB @ 10.5 GHz and an absorption bandwidth of 8.4 GHz @ −10 dB. With these high values of RL and absorbing bandwidth, LaY doped NiCuZn NSF products would be promising candidates for radar absorbing materials in the X-band.

The best microwave properties for the NSFs were obtained with an LaY concentration of x = 0.08, RL of −40 dB @ 10.5 GHz and absorption bandwidth of 8.4 GHz @ −10 dB. The NSF products show promise as radar absorbing materials in the X-band.