Nanoparticles of Fe 3 O 4 have been successfully synthesized using a simple coprecipitation technique from natural iron sands, employing HNO 3 and NH 4 OH as dispersing and precipitating agents, respectively. The substitution of Fe with Mn to result in Fe 3x Mn x O 4 (0 ≤ x ≤ 3) was conducted to control the magnetic strength of this nano-sized spinel powder. It is shown that magnetic properties depend not only on the particle size and Mn doping but also on the particles clustering. The applications for magnetic fluids, gels, and coating are extensively described. Meanwhile, the spinel MgAl 2 O 4 nanoparticles have also been prepared by the same simple method from commercial starting materials. This powder was used as a nano-reinforcer of Al-matrix composites. In addition, MgAl 2 O 4 micro-sized powder forming a thick layer was successfully grown by electroless plating on the interface of matrix-filler in Al/SiC composites. The strengthening of mechanical properties with respect to the varying uses of these MgAl 2 O 4 powders is discussed.