Synthesis of Nanocrystalline Iron Oxide Particles by Microwave Plasma Jet at Atmospheric Pressure

摘要

Nanocrystalline iron oxide particles have been prepared in gas phase at atmospheric pressure by employing a microwave plasma jet. The vaporized iron pentacarbonyl (Fe(CO)_5) carried by argon gas is pyrolyzed in the oxygen plasma generated by a microwave plasma jet. Fe_2O_3 powder with an average particle size of 26 nm is synthesized, which is identified and characterized by energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It is shown that operating the microwave plasma jet in the continuous flow mode at atmosphere is promising for the mass production of nanosized metal oxide powders other than nanocrystalline iron oxide particles, economically and efficiently.