Facile synthesis of the magnetic Ni-Cr-Fe alloy nanoparticles and its catalytic properties

Metallic nanoparticles of magnetic Ni-Cr-Fe alloy (20?30 nm) were synthetized by the decomposition reduction atmosphere using amorphous mixed metal glycerolate as a precursor. Synthetized nanoparticles were characterised by XRD, EDS and TEM. Oxidation resistance of the material was studied by subsequent XRD measurements. The alloy sample shows oxidation resistance in contrast with pure nickel nanoparticles. Catalytic activity of the alloy nanoparticles were tested in cinnamaldehyde hydrogenation and the results show advantage of the material over both synthetized pure nickel nanoparticles and commercially obtained nickel nanoparticles. The results can be applied in material engineering, catalysis, and in the other applications.