Cashew gumas a sol-gel precursor for green synthesis of nanostructured Ni and Co ferrites

The aim of this work consists in the use of cashew gum (Anacardium occidentale), a naturally occurring tropical specie from the Brazilian northeastern coast, for the synthesis of CoFe2O4 (CF) and NiFe2O4 (NF) nanoparticles. The structural, morphological and vibrational properties of nanoparticles were characterized by analytical and spectroscopic techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), FTIR, Raman spectroscopy, TEM, SAED and TG. Magnetic properties were investigated through Mossbauer spectroscopy and DC magnetometry. The XRD results showed single phase nanoparticles with space group Fd-3m and crystallite size of 7.4 and 6.0 for CF and NF, respectively. TEM images showed agglomerated particles with mode sizes of 5.0 and 6.5 nm for CF and NF. SAED confirmed the crystalline spinel structure. The TGA and FTIR showed the presence of a carbonaceous material in the samples. FTIR and Raman spectroscopy demonstrated vibrational modes characteristic of metal-oxygen bonds in the tetrahedral and octahedral sites. Magnetization measurements showed that both samples are superparamagnetic at 300 K. The Mossbauer spectra at 90 K showed the presence of single-phase CF and NF. Published by Elsevier B.V.