Synthesis and Characterization of Cobalt Ferrite Nanoparticles Grown by Chemical Co-precipitation Method

Magnetic nanoparticles of spinel ferrites are of great interest in fundamental science, especially for addressing the relationships between magnetic properties and their crystal chemistry and structure. Magnetic nanoparticles of cobalt ferrite have been synthesized by chemical co-precipitation method at different temperatures. The mixture of the metallic salts (Co(II)/Fe(II)) in the stoichiometric molar ratio 1:2 were dissolved in water at a pH of 11 maintained using NaOH. The dark brown precipitate as formed was washed, dried at room temperature and heat-treated at 200°C for 2hr in air. The structural properties of the samples were studied using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and rietveld refinement. XRD analysis revealed the nanocrystalline nature of the as prepared ferrite samples and confirmed the formation of single phase cobalt ferrite nanoparticles in the range 15–29 nm depending on the reaction temperature. FTIR was used to confirm attachment of the functional groups. The magnetic properties were studied using vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). The structure, composition and crystallinity of the cobalt ferrite nanoparticles were further examined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM).