The influence of temperature on magnetic and microwave absorption properties of Fe/graphite oxide nanocomposites

Fe/graphite oxide nanocomposites were prepared by inserting Fe3+ into layers of graphite oxide and then reducing Fe3+/graphite oxide compound at different reduced reaction temperatures in H2. The composition, crystal structure, magnetic and microwave absorption properties of Fe/graphite oxide nanocomposites were investigated using elemental analysis, transmission electron microscope (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), magnetic hysteresis curve and electromagnetic parameter analysis. The results show that the densities of samples are 2.43–2.47 g/cm3 and the nanocomposites are soft magnetic materials. The optimum reduced reaction temperature for preparing Fe/graphite oxide nanocomposites is 600 °C. With the increase of the thickness of the sample, the matching frequency tends to shift to the lower frequency region, and theoretical reflection loss becomes less at the matching frequency. Microwave absorption property of Fe/graphite oxide nanocomposites prepared at 600  °C (FeGO600) is the best. When the thickness is 1 mm, the maximum theoretical reflection loss of FeGO600 is −9 dB and the frequency region in which the maximum reflection loss is more than −6.0 dB is 11–18 GHz. In conclusion, FeGO600 is a good candidate for microwave absorbent due to its low density, wide frequency region for microwave absorption and large reflection loss.