Pseudo-superparamagnetic behaviour of barium hexaferrite particles

Magnetic Barium Hexaferrite Nanoparticles with Tunable Coercivity as Potential Magnetic Heating Agents

Using magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) for extracorporeal heating applications results in higher field strength and, therefore, particles of higher coercivity can be used, compared to intracorporeal applications. In this study, we report the synthesis and characterization of barium hexa-ferrite (BaFe12O19) nanoparticles as potential particles for magnetic heating. Using a precipitation method followed by high-temperature calcination, we first studied the influence of varied synthesis parameters on the particles' properties. Second, the iron-to-barium ratio (Fe/Ba = r) was varied between 2 and 12. Vibrating sample magnetometry, scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction were used for characterization. A considerable influence of the calcination temperature (Tcal) was found on the resulting magnetic properties, with a decrease in coercivity (HC) from values above 370 kA/m for Tcal = 800-1000 °C to HC = 45-70 kA/m for Tcal = 1200 °C. We attribute this drop in HC mainly to the formation of entirely multi-domain particles at high Tcal. For the varying Fe/Ba ratios, increasing amounts of BaFe2O4 as an additional phase were detected by XRD in the small r (barium surplus) samples, lowering the particles' magnetization. A decrease in HC was found in the increased r samples. Crystal size ranged from 47 nm to 240 nm and large agglomerates were seen in SEM images. The reported particles, due to their controllable coercivity, can be a candidate for extracorporeal heating applications in the biomedical or biotechnological field.

A Novel Spinel Ferrite-Hexagonal Ferrite Composite for Enhanced Magneto-Electric Coupling in a Bilayer with PZT

The magnetoelectric effect (ME) is an important strain mediated-phenomenon in a ferromagnetic-piezoelectric composite for a variety of sensors and signal processing devices. A bias magnetic field, in general, is essential to realize a strong ME coupling in most composites. Magnetic phases with (i) high magnetostriction for strong piezomagnetic coupling and (ii) large anisotropy field that acts as a built-in bias field are preferred so that miniature, ME composite-based devices can operate without the need for an external magnetic field. We are able to realize such a magnetic phase with a composite of (i) barium hexaferrite (BaM) with high magnetocrystalline anisotropy field and (ii) nickel ferrite (NFO) with high magnetostriction. The BNx composites, with (100 - x) wt.% of BaM and x wt.% NFO, for x = 0-100, were prepared. X-ray diffraction analysis shows that the composites did not contain any impurity phases. Scanning electron microscopy images revealed that, with an increase in NFO content, hexagonal BaM grains become prominent, leading to a large anisotropy field. The room temperature saturation magnetization showed a general increase with increasing BaM content in the composites. NFO rich composites with x ≥ 60 were found to have a large magnetostriction value of around -23 ppm, comparable to pure NFO. The anisotropy field HA of the composites, determined from magnetization and ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) measurements, increased with increasing NFO content and reached a maximum of 7.77 kOe for x = 75. The BNx composite was cut into rectangular platelets and bonded with PZT to form the bilayers. ME voltage coefficient (MEVC) measurements at low frequencies and at mechanical resonance showed strong coupling at zero bias for samples with x ≥ 33. This large in-plane HA acted as a built-in field for strong ME effects under zero external bias in the bilayers. The highest zero-bias MEVC of ~22 mV/cm Oe was obtained for BN75-PZT bilayers wherein BN75 also has the highest HA. The Bilayer of BN95-PZT showed a maximum MEVC ~992 mV/cm Oe at electromechanical resonance at 59 kHz. The use of hexaferrite-spinel ferrite composite to achieve strong zero-bias ME coupling in bilayers with PZT is significant for applications related to energy harvesting, sensors, and high frequency devices.

Microstructure, ion adsorption and magnetic behavior of mesoporous γ-Fe2O3 ferrite nanoparticles

Magnetic nanoparticles with capacity for surface functionalisation have potential applications in water purification and biomedicine. Here, a simple co-precipitation technique was used to synthesize mesoporous ferrite nanoparticles in the presence of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) micellular surfactant. The as-synthesized ferrite nanoparticles were calcined at 250 °C for 5, 10, 15, and 24 h to remove the surfactant and create a mesoporous structure. The prepared samples were characterised using a wide range of analytical techniques. Microscopical images showed that all uncalcined particles have cauliflower shape without porosity. However, after calcination, surface and deep pores were created on the synthesized nanoparticles. In addition, transmission electron microscope (TEM) images of calcined nanoparticles revealed a wormhole-like structure, which is typical for the mesoporous architectures. Based on X-ray diffraction (XRD), the uncalcined and calcined samples exhibit pure Fe3O4 (magnetite) and γ-Fe2O3 (maghemite) ferrite phases, respectively. The γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles demonstrated a high Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area with pore diameters smaller than 10 nm and a type IV isotherm similar to the mesopores. Hysteresis loops measured by vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM) showed the superparamagnetic nature for mesoporous γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles. The first-order reversal curve (FORC) diagram revealed the formation of a mesoporous structure in calcined materials which reduces coercive distribution (Hc) and magnetostatic interaction (Hu) once compared to non-calcined samples. Mesoporous γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles were successfully employed as an adsorbent for the removal of heavy metal ions of Pb(ii) from an aqueous solution. The highest lead ion adsorption was observed in mesoporous γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles prepared with 3% CTAB.

Photocatalytic degradation of organic dyes on magnetically separable barium hexaferrite as photocatalyst under conditions of visible light irradiation

In this paper, we present the first attempt to evaluate the role of carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) as a chelating agent in the sol-gel auto-combustion method of producing barium hexaferrite (BaFe₁₂O₁₉). We also report the application of the system as a photocatalyst for dye degradation. The formation, morphology, and crystalline structure of the synthesized nanoparticles are determined using XRD, SEM, EDS, VSM, FTIR, and TEM techniques. High efficiency under visible light, with a band gap of 1.62 eV and a BET surface of 17.93 m²/g, has been observed for the BaFe₁₂O₁₉ catalyst. The operating parameters, such as reaction time, initial dye concentration, light intensity, reusability, and dye type, are studied. Degradation rates as high as 98.26% (K_app = 0.082 min^-1) and 89.07% (K_app = 0.0743 min^-1) were obtained for cases of methylene blue and malachite green under conditions of visible light irradiations when BaFe₁₂O₁₉ was used. The BaFe₁₂O₁₉ catalyst has been shown to exhibit a high degradation performance for cationic dyes. Furthermore, BaFe₁₂O₁₉ magnetic nanoparticles show excellent reusability for dye degradation because the photocatalyst did not exhibit a significant decrease in its activity even after five runs (81.56%). As a result, the current study confirmed that photocatalytic degradation was a promising technology for saving water and treating wastewater formed from textile dye industries. The technique can be used to study the efficiency of photocatalytic degradation and understand the process of recycling waste effluents under conditions of minimized water use.

Magnetic properties, critical behaviors and magnetocaloric effect in non-stoichiometric spinel type Co1+xCrxFe2-xO4

The magnetic properties, magnetocaloric effect, and critical analysis of magnetic behavior of Co_1+xCr_xFe_2-xO₄ (x = 0.125, 0.250, 0.375, and 0.500) with a non-stoichiometric ratio are studied in detail. All the synthesized samples exhibit single-domain behavior. The Cr³⁺ associated with excess Co²⁺ led to tuning the magnetic moment, exchange interaction, magnetocrystalline anisotropy constant, and microwave frequency. The second-order magnetic phase transition has been confirmed from the Arrot and Arrot-Noakes plots for all the samples. The Cr³⁺ associated with excess Co²⁺ also tuned the magnetocaloric (MCE) properties showing the maximum relative cooling power of 156 J kg^-1, which is a higher value than that of previously reported Cr³⁺ substituted stoichiometric cobalt ferrite. The reliability of MCE and the nature of the magnetic phase transition of the investigated samples are confirmed by analyzing the critical exponent analysis, universal curve scaling, and scaling analysis of MCE.

Magnetic properties, magnetocaloric effect, and critical behaviors in Co1-x Cr x Fe2O4

This research work focuses on the magnetic properties, nature of the magnetic phase transition, magnetocaloric effect, and critical scaling of magnetization of various Co1-x Cr x Fe2O4 (x = 0, 0.125, 0.25, 0.375, and 0.5). The tunability of the magnetic moment, exchange interactions, magnetocrystalline anisotropy constant, and microwave frequency using Cr3+ content has been found. The nature of the magnetic phase transitions for all the Cr3+ concentrations exhibits as second order which has been confirmed from the analysis of critical scaling, universal curve scaling, and scaling analysis of the magnetocaloric effect. The critical exponent analysis for all samples was performed from the modified Arrott-, and Kouvel-Fisher-plots. These critical analyses suggest that x = 0.125, 0.250, and 0.375 samples show reliable results in the magnetocaloric effect with relative cooling power (RCP) values in the range of 128-145 J kg-1. On the other hand, x = 0.00, and 0.500 samples exhibit inconsistent RCP values. The universal curve scaling also confirms the reliability of the magnetocaloric effect of the investigated samples.

Cefotax-magnetic nanoparticles as an alternative approach to control Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) from different sources

This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of magnetic nanocomposite of cefotax against MRSA. A total of 190 samples were collected from milk, farm personnel and different environmental components from the dairy farm under the study to isolate S. aureus. Cefotax based magnetic nanoparticles was synthetized by the adsorption method and marked using Fourier-transform infrared spectrum (FT-IR), and X-ray diffraction (XRD), then it was characterized using Scanning and Transmission Electron Microscope (SEM and TEM). The obtained results revealed that number of positive samples of S. aureus isolation were 63 (33.1%), mainly from feed manger followed by milk machine swabs (60.0 and 53.3%, respectively) at X2 = 48.83 and P < 0.001. Obtained isolates were identified biochemically and by using molecular assays (PCR), also mec A gene responsible for resistance to cefotax was detected. Testing the sensitivity of 63 isolates of S. aureus showed variable degree of resistance to different tested antibiotics and significant sensitivity to cefotax based magnetic nanoparticles at P < 0.05. It was concluded that dairy environment might act a potential source for transmission of MRSA between human and animal populations. In addition, cefotax based magnetic nanoparticles verified an extreme antimicrobial efficacy against MRSA.

Application of Spinel and Hexagonal Ferrites in Heterogeneous Photocatalysis

Semiconducting materials display unique features that enable their use in a variety of applications, including self-cleaning surfaces, water purification systems, hydrogen generation, solar energy conversion, etc. However, one of the major issues is separation of the used materials from the process suspension. Therefore, chemical compounds with magnetic properties have been proposed as crucial components of photocatalytic composites, facilitating separation and recovery of photocatalysts under magnetic field conditions. This review paper presents the current state of knowledge on the application of spinel and hexagonal ferrites in heterogeneous photocatalysis. The first part focuses on the characterization of magnetic (nano)particles. The next section presents the literature findings on the single-phase magnetic photocatalyst. Finally, the current state of scientific knowledge on the wide variety of magnetic-photocatalytic composites is presented. A key aim of this review is to indicate that spinel and hexagonal ferrites are considered as an important element of heterogeneous photocatalytic systems and are responsible for the effective recycling of the photocatalytic materials.

Magnetoviscosity of a Magnetic Fluid Based on Barium Hexaferrite Nanoplates

This paper presents the results of an experimental study of the influence of an external magnetic field on the shear flow behaviour of a magnetic fluid based on barium hexaferrite nanoplates. With the use of rheometry, the magnetoviscosity and field-dependent yield-stress in the fluid are evaluated. The observed fluid behaviour is compared to that of ferrofluids with magnetic nanoparticles having high dipole interaction. The results obtained supplement the so-far poorly studied topic of the influence of magnetic nanoparticles' shape on magnetoviscous effects. It is concluded that the parameter determining the observed magnetoviscous effects in the fluid under study is the ratio V2/l3, where V is the volume of the nanoparticle and l is the size of the nanoparticle in the direction corresponding to its orientation in the externally applied magnetic field.