Preparation and Antibacterial Activity of Three-component NiFe2O4@PANI@Ag Nanocomposite

A new three-component and magnetically responsive NiFe2O4@PANI@Ag nanocomposite has been fabricated by coating of nickel ferrite, NiFe2O4, nanoparticles with polyaniline (PANI) and subsequent immobilization of silver nanoparticles onto the surface of polyaniline shell. The as-prepared nanocomposite has been characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). The saturation magnetization of the NiFe2O4 core decreases dramatically after coating with polyaniline and silver nanoparticles, however, the nanocomposite NiFe2O4@PANI@Ag can be still separated from solution media through magnetic decantation. The antibacterial activity of the synthesized nanocomposite was studied and compared with those of naked NiFe2O4, NiFe2O4@PANI and some standard antibacterial drugs.