Investigation of the process of ferrite formation in the Li₂CO₃–ZnO–Fe₂O₃ system under high-energy actions

Results of synthesis of lithium-zinc ferrites under high-energy actions including mechanical activation of the mixture of initial reagents in a planetary mill and heating of reaction mixtures upon exposure to accelerated high-energy electron beams are presented. The initial structure of the reaction mixtures corresponds to the stoichiometric spinel formula: Li_0.5(1–x)Zn _x Fe_2.5–0.5x О₄, where х = 0.2. To elucidate the effect of radiation on kinetic transformations of the phase composition, analogous investigations are performed with thermal annealing in a furnace. It is established that mechanical activation and radiation-thermal heating of the Li₂CO₃–ZnO–Fe₂O₃ mixture of initial reagents increases significantly the reactivity of solid phase systems thereby decreasing strongly the temperature of synthesis and improving the homogeneity of the end product. To synthesize Li_0.4Fe_2.4Zn_0.2O₄ lithium-zinc ferrospinels with homogeneous composition, it is suffice to provide a synthesis temperature of 600°С with holding time of 60 min under complex high-energy action including mechanical activation of the initial mixture of reagents and heating upon exposure to a high-energy beam of electrons.