Study of magnetic and structural properties of ferrofluids based on cobalt–zinc ferrite nanoparticles

Abstract

Ferrofluids are colloidal systems composed of a single domain of magnetic nanoparticles with a mean diameter around 30nm, dispersed in a liquid carrier. Magnetic Co(1−x)ZnxFe2O4 (x=0.25, 0.50, 0.75) ferrite nanoparticles were prepared via co-precipitation method from aqueous salt solutions in an alkaline medium. The composition and structure of the samples were characterized through Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction, respectively. Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) studies permitted determining nanoparticle size; grain size of nanoparticle conglomerates was established via Atomic Force Microscopy. The magnetic behavior of ferrofluids was characterized by Vibrating Sample Magnetometer (VSM); and finally, a magnetic force microscope was used to visualize the magnetic domains of Co(1−x)ZnxFe2O4 nanoparticles. X-ray diffraction patterns of Co(1−x)ZnxFe2O4 show the presence of the most intense peak corresponding to the (311) crystallographic orientation of the spinel phase of CoFe2O4. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy confirmed the presence of the bonds associated to the spinel structures; particularly for ferrites. The mean size of the crystallite of nanoparticles determined from the full-width at half maximum of the strongest reflection of the (311) peak by using the Scherrer approximation diminished from (9.5±0.3)nm to (5.4±0.2)nm when the Zn concentration increases from 0.21 to 0.75. The size of the Co–Zn ferrite nanoparticles obtained by TEM is in good agreement with the crystallite size calculated from X-ray diffraction patterns, using Scherer's formula. The magnetic properties investigated with the aid of a VSM at room temperature presented super-paramagnetic behavior, determined by the shape of the hysteresis loop. In this study, we established that the coercive field of Co(1−x)ZnxFe2O4 magnetic nanoparticles, the crystal and nanoparticle sizes determined by X-ray Diffraction and TEM, respectively, decrease with the increase of the Zn at%. Finally, our magnetic nanoparticles are not very hard magnetic materials given that the hysteresis loop is small and for this reason Co(1−x)ZnxFe2O4 nanoparticles are considered as soft magnetic material.