Structural and magnetic properties of microwave-synthesized reduced graphene oxide/VO2/Fe2O3 nanocomposite

TL;DR

This paper presents a quick and efficient microwave method to create a magnetic nanocomposite using graphene and metal oxides for potential biomedical uses.

Contribution

A novel microwave-assisted synthesis method for a ternary rGO/VO2/Fe2O3 nanocomposite with magnetic properties.

Findings

Microwave irradiation for 90 seconds effectively reduces and exfoliates graphite oxide into rGO.

Fe2O3 nanoparticles and VO2 nanorods are deposited on the rGO surface, confirmed by morphological analysis.

The ternary composite exhibits promising magnetic properties suitable for biomedical applications.

Abstract

Reduced graphene oxide (rGO)-assisted microwave (MW) synthesis of metal-oxide-based binary and ternary nanocomposites has recently gained considerable research attention. In this context, the current work demonstrates a facile rGO-supported solid-state MW synthetic route for fabricating a ternary nanocomposite of VO2, Fe2O3, and rGO. Here, the MW irradiation for 90 s was found to be suitable for the reduction and exfoliation of graphite oxide to form rGO, the reduction of V2O5 to form VO2, and the formation of Fe2O3 from ferrocene. X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses confirm the formation of distinct metal oxides in the presence of rGO. Furthermore, the morphological analysis reveals the deposition of Fe2O3 nanoparticles and VO2 nanorods on the 2D rGO surface. Notably, the ternary composite displayed good magnetic properties for its potential biomedical applications. Overall, this work explores an efficient and cost-effective synthetic approach for developing graphene-based magnetic nanocomposites.

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