Characterization of Supermagnetic Magnetite Powder Synthesized with Water Extracts of <i>Moringa oleifera</i> Leaves and FeCl<sub>2</sub>·7H<sub>2</sub>O

Abstract

The surface coated magnetite nanoparticles dispersed into water can be used in clinical for magnetic resonance imaging, for medical diagnosis and for magnetic field-assisted cancer therapy. Based on their applications in many fields, several methods are widely used and reported in literature for the synthesis of iron oxide nanoparticles. In the present paper, we report on the green synthesis of magnetite phase of iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe₃O₄), which were fabricated using water extracts from the leaves of <i>Moringa oleifera</i> and the inorganic salt FeCl₂·7H₂O, as iron precursor. The obtained powder was characterized through spectroscopic and thermal methods. The vibrating sample magnetometer was used in order to find out about the magnetic properties of the prepared sample. The Fourier transform infrared spectra (FT-IR) have shown peaks at 402 cm^-1 and 593 cm^-1, thus confirming the presence of magnetite in powder. X-ray diffraction gave peaks confirming the presence of Fe₃O₄ in its magnetite phase. Electronic transmission microscopy had indicated that the crystals obtained was of a spherical shape with an average diameter of 50 nm. Gravimetric thermal analysis (GTA) showed a peak centered at around 332°C, signalizing the thermal decomposition of the magnetite. The magnetic properties of the prepared powder exhibited the measured lower coercivity and remanence, demonstrating that the powder under study was made of superparamagnetic particles, suggesting that the prepared magnetite could be a possible candidate for biomedical applications.