Phyto-mechanochemical Synthesis of Copper Ferrite Nanoparticles: Structural, Magnetic, Photocatalytic, and Antibacterial Properties

Sustainable nanotechnology is becoming more prominent daily, especially in preparing magnetic nanoparticles like CuFe₂O₄. This work involves the phyto-mechanochemical (mechanical and green) synthesis of CuFe₂O₄ NPs by Spinacia oleracea leaf extract. Various spectroscopic and analytical techniques including FTIR, UV–vis, XRD, SEM, VSM, EDX, and BET, confirmed the formation and characterizations of the CuFe₂O₄ NPs with 26 nm diameter. Results from VSM analysis demonstrated ferromagnetism with high saturation magnetization. At the same time UV–vis spectroscopy showed the optical characteristics of these materials. The photocatalytic properties of CuFe₂O₄ NPs were tested through decoloration of the textile industry pollutant congo red (CR) dye. CuFe₂O₄ NPs showed an effective degradation rate of 89% for CR dye during a 90 min incubation period under their best operating conditions. The degradation mechanism was studied through kinetic measurements utilizing first-order and Langmuir-Hinshelwood models. The nanoparticle size and bioactive properties enabled them to demonstrate powerful antibacterial capabilities against Streptococcus and Escherichia coli bacteria. Uniformity is a key feature of phyto-mechanically synthesized CuFe₂O₄ nanoparticle synthesis while demonstrating their potential for environmental remediation and biomedical research.