Role of pH on the Structural and Infrared Properties of Nickel Ferrite Nanoparticles Prepared via Sol-Gel Auto Combustion Method

Wet chemical methods in particular sol-gel auto combustion method play a vital role in governing the size and the shape of the particles. In the present communication, nickel ferrite nanoparticles were prepared by sol-gel auto combustion technique using citric acid as a fuel. The metal nitrate to fuel ratio was chosen as 1:3 using propellant chemistry approach. The nanopowder of the nickel ferrite was prepared at various pH viz. 2, 5, 7 and 9. The obtained nanopowder was annealed at 600°C for 4 h and used for further characterizations. All the samples were structurally characterized by X-ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy technique. The room temperature XRD pattern reveals the formation of single-phase cubic spinel structure. The lattice constant calculated from XRD data shows dependence of pH values. The Fourier transform infrared spectra show two absorption bands in all the four samples near 400 cm-1 and 600 cm-1. However, a slight variation in the absorption band is observed for different pH.