Synthesis and characterization of binary selenides of transition metals to investigate its photocatalytic, antimicrobial and anticancer efficacy

Development of resilient and efficient composite materials that exhibit substantial antimicrobial activity, ample photocatalytic ability and considerable capacity for drug delivery is highly desirable. The present study demonstrates the incorporation of selenium (Se) in transition metals (vanadium-V, niobium-Nb, and tantalum-Ta) via standard solid-state hydrothermal reaction method. Generated nanostructures (V:Se, Nb:Se, Ta:Se) were characterized using various techniques. XRD analysis confirmed the presence of monoclinic phase compounds while crystallite size (~ 13.5–26.2 nm) was calculated using Debye–Scherrer equation. FESEM was used to examine surface morphologies of V:Se (rod-like and disc-shaped) and of Nb and Ta selenides (irregular agglomerated nanospheres). Compositional and functional group analysis was undertaken through FTIR spectroscopy and EDS coupled with SEM, respectively. Raman spectroscopy was carried out to ascertain the bending and stretching vibrational modes in samples. Optical properties were investigated through UV–Vis spectroscopy and the PL emission spectra were acquired to evaluate the charge separation and recombination behavior of compounds. Thermal stability of designed composites was measured using TGA/DSC. Potential uses of the prepared nanoparticles were explored in multiple fields including photocatalysis, antimicrobial and drug delivery systems. Methylene blue dye was degraded under 400–700 nm wavelength in the presence of synthesized wide band gap composites as photocatalysts. The selenium–metal particles were subjected as antimicrobial agents against gram (−ve) and gram (+ve) bacteria and experimental results suggested this material to be an effective antibiotic. Furthermore, synthesized nanocomposites were examined as carrier of anticancer drug (DOX) and their drug delivery profile was also investigated.