Different Sol-Gel Preparations Of Iron-Doped Tio2 Nanoparticles: Characterization, Photocatalytic Activity And Cytotoxicity

Fe-doped TiO2 nanoparticles were prepared by sol-gel method using titanium tetraisopropoxide as the precursor of titania, 2-propanol as solvent, iron(III) chloride as dopant source through calcination at 350 A degrees C. Three different types of samples were synthesized. Samples were characterized by means of X-ray powder diffraction, diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller analysis. All the samples showed the typical structure of anatase plus an amount of brookite ranging from 25 to 35 wt%. The features of the particles, i.e., surface area and aggregation state, were influenced by the reagents ratio: Generally increasing the solvent volume with respect to the titanium precursors induced the formation of nanoparticles with high surface area and low aggregation. Photocatalytic activity of Fe-doped TiO2 nanopowders was evaluated through methylene blue degradation experiments conducted under simulated solar light irradiation. The cytotoxic potential of the three samples was evaluated in human umbilical vein endothelial cells.