Stable Citrate-Coated Iron Oxide Superparamagnetic Nanoclusters at High Salinity

Superparamagnetic nanoclusters may be used in imaging in biomedicine and in mapping of petroleum reservoirs, by generating either ultrasonic or acoustic signals with oscillating magnetic motion For a given magnetization per weight of iron oxide, nanoclusters with diameters from 20 to 100 nm experience a much larger magnetic force than that of the primary sub-10-nm primary particles Aqueous dispersions of 0 1 wt % superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoclusters were stabilized with citric acid on the particle surface, with a high loading of 90% iron oxide The dispersions were stable for months even with high salt concentrations up to 4 wt % at a pH of 6 and 8 based on the hydrodynamic diameter from dynamic light scattering The citrate ligands provide electrostatic repulsion, as characterized by the zeta potential The small size of the clusters, superparamagnetic properties, and high salt tolerance are highly beneficial in various applications including the mapping of petroleum reservoirs with magnetomotive techniques