Investigation of the Structural and Magnetic Properties of BaM Hexaferrites Prepared from Scrap Iron Filings

Abstract

Abstract: In this work, we demonstrate the feasibility of preparing a commercially important type of magnetic oxide, BaM (BaFe12O19) hexaferrite, using scrap iron filings as an iron source. The hexaferrites were prepared by conventional solid state reaction and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and magnetization measurements. XRD patterns of samples prepared by mixing powders extracted from the iron filings with appropriate amounts of barium carbonate and sintering at 1200 °C revealed the presence of a major BaM hexaferrite with small amounts of nonmagnetic α-Fe2O3 oxide phase. On the other hand, SEM images of the samples showed clear crystallization of perfect hexagonal platelets of BaM hexaferrite, which was further confirmed by the Curie temperature determined from the thermomagnetic measurements. The saturation magnetization of the samples was in the range of 45.1– 52.1 emu/g and the remnant magnetization in the range of 14.8 – 19.0 emu/g. These values and the moderate coercivity of ~ 1 kOe suggest that the prepared samples could potentially be useful for high-density magnetic recording. Keywords: Hexaferrite, Solid waste, Magnetic Properties, Structural properties, Magnetic recording.