Octahedron-Shaped Nano FeCo2O4 Phase Materials: Wet Chemical Synthesis and Characterization Studies

Background: Amongst the different spinel cobaltites investigated to date, the FeCo2O4 phase has been relatively less studied in detail despite the potential applications in several areas. As the nanostructured spinels are sensitive to the processing conditions, we have extended our research interest in FeCo2O4 phase materials. Objective: The objective of this study is (i) to synthesize the FeCo2O4 nanomaterials by different approaches using different precursors and (ii) to investigate the structural, thermal, optical, and microstructural properties of different materials by various characterization techniques. Methods: Different approaches such as hexamine-assisted combustion synthesis, co-precipitation, and solvothermal methods were employed to obtain FeCo2O4 nanomaterials using different precursors. Results: The XRD pattern of the as-prepared product of the solvothermal method is significantly different from other processed as-prepared products. The annealed FeCo2O4 materials obtained by coprecipitation using nitrates and/or chlorides showed nearly a single phase of FeCo2O4 nanomaterials. Conclusion: The phase formation of FeCo2O4 materials is sensitive to the presently employed synthesis conditions. The XRD patterns confirmed the deficient crystalline nature of the as-prepared materials produced by sol-gel combustion and co-precipitation methods. The annealed materials obtained by the co-precipitation using nitrates and chlorides showed nearly a single FeCo2O4 phase. The observed particle sizes of the FeCo2O4 phase materials are octahedral shaped with different sizes of 89 to 344 nm. The optical property studied using the FT-IR technique shows IR bands at 500 ∼ 630 cm^-1.