Cobalt(II) macrocycle complexes based synthesis of Co3O4 nanoparticles: structural and spectral characterization

In this paper, macrocyclic cobalt(II) complexes [CoL1](NO3)2.4H2O (1) and [CoL2](NO3)2.2H2O (2) have been synthesized from the reaction of dialdehydes 1,2-bis(2-formylphenyl)ethane and 1,3-bis(2-formylphenyl)propane, Co(NO3)2.6H2O and 1,2-cyclohexanediamine with molar ration 1:1:1 in methanole and characterized by elemental analyses and FT-IR spectroscopy. Then used as precursors for preparation of Co3O4 nanoparticles via solid-state thermal decomposition without the need a catalyst, employing toxic solvent, template or surfactant and complicated equipment, which makes it efficient, one-step, simple and environment-friendly. The structure and morphology of the Co3O4 products were characterized by FT-IR spectroscopy, XRD and TEM. The XRD result shows that the Co3O4 products are pure, single phase and crystalline. The TEM result shows Co3O4 nanoparticles with the size between