Water dispersible CoFe2O4 nanoparticles with improved colloidal stability for biomedical applications

TL;DR

This study reports the synthesis of water-dispersible CoFe2O4 nanoparticles with enhanced colloidal stability for biomedical use, achieved through surface modification with citric acid, and demonstrates their biocompatibility.

Contribution

The paper introduces a ligand exchange method to improve water dispersibility and stability of CoFe2O4 nanoparticles for biomedical applications.

Findings

Citric acid coating enhances water dispersibility and colloidal stability.

Nanoparticles exhibit high zeta potential and low coercivity.

Biocompatibility confirmed via cytotoxicity tests in L929 cells.

Abstract

Single phase cobalt ferrite (CoFe2O4, CFO) nanoparticles of a controlled size (~ 6 nm) exhibiting superparamagnetic properties have been synthesized by hydrothermal technique using oleic acid (OA) as surfactant. The oleic acid coated CFO nanoparticles are stable in non-polar organic media, such as hexane but are not well dispersible in water. The surface of these snanoparticles has been further modified by citric acid using ligand exchange process, which makes CFO nanoparticles more stable colloidal solution in water. Citric acid coated CFO nanoparticles exhibits high dispersibility in water, high zeta potential, very low coercivity and moderate saturation magnetization. Biocompatibility of these CFO nanoparticles is demonstrated through cytotoxicity test in L929 cell line.