Continuous synthesis of iron oxide (Fe3O4) nanoparticles via thermal decomposition--颗粒学报PARTICUOLOGY

Glasgow, W., Fellows, B., Qi, B., Darroudi, T., Kitchens, C., Ye, L., . . . Mefford, O. T. (2016). Continuous synthesis of iron oxide (Fe3O4) nanoparticles via thermal decomposition. Particuology, 26, 47-53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.partic.2015.09.011

Continuous synthesis of iron oxide (Fe₃O₄) nanoparticles via thermal decomposition

William Glasgow ^a, Ben Fellows ^a, Bin Qi ^a, Taghi Darroudi ^b, Christopher Kitchens ^c, Longfei Ye ^d, Thomas M. Crawford ^d, O. Thompson Mefford ^a *

a Department of Material Science and Engineering, Center for Optical Materials Science and Engineering Technologies, Clemson University, 91 Technology Drive, Anderson, SC 29625, USA
b Electron Microscopy Laboratory, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29625, USA
c Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA
d Department of Physics and Astronomy and Smart State Center for Experimental Nanoscale Physics, University of South Carolina, 712 Main Street, Columbia, SC 29208, USA

10.1016/j.partic.2015.09.011

Volume 26, June 2016, Pages 47-53

Received 29 May 2015, Revised 9 September 2015, Accepted 24 September 2015, Available online 7 January 2016, Version of Record 18 April 2016.

E-mail: mefford@clemson.edu

Highlights

• A continuous flow thermal decomposition method for producing iron oxide nanoparticles was studied.

• Iron oxide nanoparticles produced in the continuous flow reactor were crystalline.

• Iron oleate/oleic acid molar ratio was the key factor in deciding particle size in this process.

• A continuous flow reaction mechanism was proposed.

Abstract

Iron oxide nanoparticles have become of great interest in the medical field for their potential uses in areas such as biomagnetic imaging and hypothermia cancer treatment. Traditionally, particles for these applications are produced through batch-based methodologies. Herein, we demonstrate an alternative continuous flow production method for the synthesis of Fe₃O₄ iron oxide nanoparticles. Advantages of continuous flow over the batch method include consistent formation of uniformly spherical particles, thorough mixing of reactants, and capacity for high-volume particle production. In this study, a continuous flow reaction mechanism was proposed in which stoichiometric control of reactants had the potential to control final particle size. The project was conducted under the supposition that the iron oleate/ligand ratio in the precursor was the greatest size control factor, with a higher ratio resulting in smaller particles. The resulting particles produced by this continuous method were characterized by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and magnetometry.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

Continuous flow; Iron oxide; Magnetite; Synthesis

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