Preparation of ferromagnetic chromium dioxide

Claim 1

A process for preparing ferromagnetic chromium dioxide, which ferromagnetic chromium dioxide has improved residual magnetization and a better orientation ratio when incorporated into magnetic recording media, which process comprises: reacting oxides of 3-valent and 6-valent chromium under a pressure of from 100 to 700 bar at a temperature of from 200° to 600° C. in the presence of water and in the presence of antimony(III) oxide and iron oxide as modifiers to form chromium dioxide, and thereafter (1) treating the so formed chromium dioxide in an aqueous suspension with sodium sulfite; (2) filtering, washing and drying the so treated chromium dioxide; and (3) heating the treated chromium dioxide at from 210° to 280° C. for from 30 minutes to 6 hours in an inert gas atmosphere, with the proviso that the resulting heated material consists only of the crystalline phases of chromium dioxide and of orthorhombic CrOOH.