Facile one-pot environmentally benign synthesis of graphene decorated hematite nanocomposites for environmental remediation, antibacterial and anticancer activity

Dyes and heavy metals have raised an increasing number of pollution incidents and causes detrimental effects on living organisms. Therefore, this research aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a nanocomposite composed of egg albumen-mediated hematite nanoparticles (& alpha;Fe2O3) and reduced graphene oxide decorated with & alpha;Fe2O3 (RGO & alpha;Fe2O3 NCs). This nanocomposite has remarkable adsorbing properties for methylene blue, methyl orange, and cadmium (II) followed by their anticancer and antimicrobial activities. The RGO-& alpha;Fe2O3 NCs were characterized by XRD, SEM/EDAX, FTIR, and TEM analysis. At the optimal reaction conditions, the adsorption capability of these RGO-& alpha;Fe2O3 NCs was demonstrated by their impressive ability to remove methylene blue, methyl orange, and cadmium (II) with efficiencies of 92.110%, 87.240%, and 89.500%, respectively. At 303 K, The Langmuir adsorption isotherm model accurately represented the adsorption equilibrium data of methylene blue, methyl orange, and cadmium (II). The maximum monolayer adsorption capacity was calculated to be 128.205 mg/g, 64.930 mg/g, and 84.746 mg/g, respectively. RGO-& alpha;Fe2O3 NCs were also observed to be potent antimicrobial agents against pathogenic bacteria Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and intestinal bacteria Escherichia coli (E. coli), as well as a promising anticancer agent against human lung cancer cells A549. The powerful antibacterial and anticancer properties of RGO-& alpha;Fe2O3 NCs are a result of the combined apoptotic and bacteriostatic effects of Fe2+ ions and graphene sheets, which enhance the production of ROS.