Particle size and magnetic properties dependence on growth temperature for rapid mixed co-precipitated magnetite nanoparticles

Magnetite nanoparticles have been prepared by co-precipitation using a custom-designed jet mixer to achieve rapid mixing (RM) of reactants in a timescale of milliseconds. The quick and stable nucleation obtained allows control of the particle size and size distribution via a more defined growth process. Nanoparticles of different sizes were prepared by controlling the processing temperature in the first few seconds post-mixing. The average size of the nanoparticles investigated using a Tecnai transmission electron microscope is found to increase with the temperature from 3.8 nm at 1 +/- 1 degrees C to 10.9 nm for particles grown at 95 +/- 1 degrees C. The temperature dependence of the size distribution follows the same trend and is explained in terms of Ostwald ripening of the magnetite nanoparticles during the co-precipitation of Fe2+ and Fe3+. The magnetic properties were studied by monitoring the blocking temperature via both DC and AC techniques. Strikingly, the obtained RM particles maintain the high magnetization (as high as similar to 88 A m(2) kg(-1) at 500 kA m(-1)) while the coercivity is as low as similar to 12 A m(-1) with the expected temperature dependence. Besides, by adding a drop of tetramethylammonium hydroxide, aqueous ferrofluids with long term stability are obtained, suggesting their suitability for applications in ferrofluid technology and biomedicine.