Evaluation of ultrasonic energy and temperature on the structural, morphological, and magnetic properties of Fe3O4 nanoparticles

Abstract

Iron oxide nanoparticles currently have multiple technological, medical, and environmental applications, making an efficient and sustainable production process necessary. This work systematically investigates the ultrasonic energy and reaction temperature in synthesizing Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles on their structural, morphological, and magnetic properties. The properties were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform (FTIR), X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selected area electron diffraction (SAED), and vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM). The results show that the synthesis process parameters are crucial in forming Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles with superparamagnetic properties. It was found that higher temperatures or ultrasonic energy led to an increase in grain size, ranging from 8 to 20 nm. Consequently, the variation of these parameters significantly impacts the magnetic properties of the nanoparticles. For instance, small coercive fields (0.51 Oe) were observed in samples with a grain size of 8.40 (2) nm. These relevant findings could play a key role in developing future industrial applications.