Enhanced Photocatalytic Degradation of Eosin Yellow Dye using Fe3O4 Nanoparticles from S. prostrata Leaf Extract and their Cytotoxicity against MCF-7 Cell Line

Abstract

In this study, superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPR-Fe₃O₄ NPs) were successfully synthesized via green route using Suaeda prostrata leaf extract as a natural reducing and stabilizing agent. The phytochemicals in the extract facilitated the formation of uniformly distributed, crystalline nanoparticles under eco-friendly conditions. Comprehensive characterization using XRD, FTIR, UV-Vis, SEM-EDX, HRTEM, XPS and VSM techniques confirmed the structural integrity, surface morphology, elemental composition, magnetic properties and functional groups involved in the bioreduction process. The average crystalline size of SPR-Fe₃O₄ NPs is 21.3 nm, exhibits superparamagnetic nature (14999.92 Oe) and characteristic type IV isotherm with a prominent H3-type hysteresis loop suggests monolayer-multilayer adsorption. The SPR-Fe₃O₄ NPs exhibited excellent photocatalytic performance in the degradation of eosin yellow (EY) dye under visible light, with degradation efficiency influenced by catalyst dosage (50 mg) and dye concentration (10 mg/L) in 80 min. Kinetic studies indicated a pseudo-first-order reaction mechanism. Notably, the catalyst maintained over 85% degradation efficiency after five consecutive cycles, with minimal structural changes as confirmed by XRD analysis, demonstrating outstanding reusability and stability. These results confirm that SPR-Fe₃O₄ NPs exhibit concentration-dependent cytotoxic activity against MCF-7 cells (128.67 mean), making them potentially useful in cancer nanomedicine applications, particularly in targeted therapy or drug delivery systems.