Comparative study of iron oxide nanoparticles as-prepared and dispersed in Copaiba oil using Mössbauer spectroscopy with low and high velocity resolution

Iron oxide nanoparticles, probably magnetite, as-prepared and dispersed in Copaiba oil were studied by Mössbauer spectroscopy using two different spectrometers: with a low velocity resolution (512 channels) for measurements at 295 and 21 K and with a high velocity resolution (4096 channels) for measurements at 295 and 90 K. The fitting of all measured spectra demonstrated that usual models applied to fit Mössbauer spectra of magnetite and maghemite particles were not suitable. Therefore, the recorded spectra were fitted using a large number of spectral components on the basis of better quality of the fit and linearity of differential spectra. The number of components obtained for the better fit appeared to be different for spectra measured with a low and a high velocity resolution. However, these results demonstrated differences of Mössbauer parameters for iron oxide nanoparticles as-prepared and dispersed in Copaiba oil at applied temperatures. The effect of Copaiba oil molecules on Mössbauer parameters may be a result of the interactions of polar molecules such as kaurinic acid with nanoparticles’ surface.

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► Mössbauer spectroscopy with a high velocity resolution.
► Iron oxide nanoparticles for magnetic fluids.
► Effect of polar molecules on the hyperfine interactions.