Surface Structure of Mechanically Activated and of Mechanosynthesized Zinc Ferrite

Zinc ferrite forms the structure of a normal spinel. A mechanical activation and a mechanosynthesis of zinc ferrite at room temperature lead to the formation of the metastable inverse spinel structure. The changes in the surface structure of mechanically activated and of mechanosynthesized zinc ferrite as a function of the mechanical treatment time and the relaxation of the mechanically induced inverse spinel structure by thermal treatment in the temperature range 800–1100 K have been studied using the ESCA method. The surface structure of the mechanically disturbed zinc ferrite, compared to the bulk structures of the inverse and normal spinels, and the mechanically induced increase in the reactivity are discussed.