Precipitation synthesis of magnetite Fe3O4 nanoflakes

Precipitation can be applied to synthesize magnetite Fe3O4 nanoflakes in an ambient air atmosphere without using any surfactant, templates or special equipment. Magnetite nanoflakes were precipitated from only Fe2+ chloride solution without adding Fe3+. The formation of Fe3O4 nanoflakes is suggested to occur due to formation of an intermediate goethite phase, thus providing anisotropic crystal growth. Compared to other methods, the method presented here is fast and suitable for large scale synthesis.