Solution combustion synthesis of different oxides involves a self-sustained reaction betweenan oxidizer (e.g., metal nitrate) and a fuel (e.g., glycine, hydrazine). The
mechanism ofsynthesis for three major iron oxide phases, i.e.,
![](/images/gifchars/alpha.gif)
- and
![](/images/gifchars/gamma.gif)
-Fe
2O
3 and Fe
3O
4, using thecombustion approach and a combination of simple precursors such as iron nitrate and oxalate,as well as different fuels, is investigated. Based on the obtained fundamental knowledge,for the first time in the literature, the above powders with well-crystalline structures andsurface areas in the range 50-175 m
2/g are produced using a
single approach whilesimultaneously avoiding additional calcination procedures. It is also shown that utilizing
complex fuels and
complex oxidizers is an attractive methodology to control the productcomposition and properties.