A Simple Scalable Production Route for Superparamagnetic Ferrite Nanoparticles with Size and Shape Tuneability

Ferrites can be considered as special cases of magnetite where Fe2+ cations are replaced with other divalent metal cations. The synthetic protocols for the production of ferrite nanoparticles also bear striking similarities to the preparation of magnetite. Synthetic methods followed for the preparation of the ferrite nanoparticles are known to alter magnetic, catalytic, and optoelectronic properties drastically. Thus, optimizing the synthetic protocol for the fine-tuning of dimension and morphology-dependent properties is of primary importance. In this work, the use of simple metal nitrate salts as precursor materials for the preparation of ferrite nanoparticles is described. The alcoholic hydrolysis of the metal nitrates in isopropanol produces corresponding hydroxides, which, in addition to oleic acid, result in metal-oleate complexes. Thermal decomposition of the precursor oleate complex produces highly monodispersed ferrite nanoparticles.