THE EFFECT OF ADDITIVES ON THE SIZE OF Fe3O4 PARTICLES

The study on the effect of different additives on the size and size uniformity of magnetite (Fe3O4) nanoparticles is described. The magnetite particles are characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The X-ray powder diffraction patterns and IR spectra of the as-formed magnetite particles indicate additive-free products were obtained. Analyses on the size and size distribution of the magnetite obtained suggest that the additives – surfactants, chitosan and inorganic ligands have different manipulating ability. Surfactants gave better manipulation on particle size (ca. 45 nm) as well as the size distribution (ca. SD 20 nm). Chitosan can manipulate the size distribution while maintaining the average size of the original magnetite. Whereas inorganic ligands, with the exception of thiourea, exert only slight influence on the size distribution with no manipulation over the average size. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) micrographs suggest that citrate and stearic acid may have affected the final morphology of the magnetite formed in their presence