Sol–Gel Synthesis and Characterizations of Spinel Nickel Chromite (NiCr2O4) Nanoparticles to Study their Photocatalytic, Antibacterial and Anticancer Activities

Abstract

A facile and cost-effective sol–gel technique has been used to synthesize nickel chromite (NiCr2O4) nanoparticles (NCNPs) at [Formula: see text]C to investigate their photocatalytic together with antibacterial and anticancer activities. The synthesized nanopowder was characterized by Thermogravimetric thermal analysis (TG-DTA), X-ray Diffraction Spectroscopy (XRD), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM), High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HR-TEM), Fourier Transform-Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray Photon Electroscopy (XPS) and UV–Visible Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopy (UV-DRS) and Photoluminescence (PL). Beyond [Formula: see text]C, the thermal durability of NCNPs was confirmed by TG-DTA analysis. The synthesized NPs were cubic structured corresponding to their spinel structure, a crystallite size of 38[Formula: see text]nm and an optical bandgap of 2.7 eV. The PL spectra revealed emission bands in the visible and UV regions. The surface-phase-pure elemental and electronic arrangement of the NCNPs were verified by X-ray photon spectroscopy. Photocatalytic activity of NCNPs against Methylene Blue dye revealed 89% degradation in 1 h. The in vitro antibacterial and anticancer activities of NCNPs were also examined. Among the tested microbes, Staphylococcus aureus exhibited the highest level of sensitivity (9 mm), while Escherichia coli had the lowest (5 mm) against NCNPs. The MTT test revealed the significant cytotoxicity of NCNPs against carcinogenic HeLa and MCF-7 cells. Thus, the synthesized NCNPs could be rated as potential photocatalytic, bactericidal and anticarcinogenic agents.