A Facile Preparation and Energetic Characteristics of the Core/Shell CoFeO/Al Nanowires Thermite Film.

In this study, CoFeO is selected for the first time to synthesize CoFeO/Al nanothermite films via an integration of nano-Al with CoFeO nanowires (NWs), which can be prepared through a facile hydrothermal-annealing route. The resulting nanothermite film demonstrates a homogeneous structure and an intense contact between the Al and CoFeO NWs at the nanoscale. In addition, both thermal analysis and laser ignition test reveal the superb energetic performances of the prepared CoFeO/Al NWs nanothermite film. Within different thicknesses of nano-Al for the CoFeO/Al NWs nanothermite films investigated here, the maximum heat output has reached as great as 2100 J·g at the optimal thickness of 400 nm for deposited Al. Moreover, the fabrication strategy for CoFeO/Al NWs is also easy and suitable for diverse thermite systems based upon other composite metal oxides, such as MnCoO and NiCoO. Importantly, this method has the featured advantages of simple operation and compatibility with microsystems, both of which may further facilitate potential applications for functional energetic chips.