Hematite
nanoparticles are abundant in the photic zone of aquatic
environments, where they play a prominent role in photocatalytic transformations
of bound organics. Here, we examine the photocatalytic degradation
of rhodamine B by visible light using two different structurally well-defined
hematite nanoparticle morphologies. In addition to detailed solid
characterization and aqueous kinetics measurements, we also exploit
species-selective scavengers in electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy
to sequester specific reaction channels and thereby assess their impact.
The photodegradation rates for nanoplates dominated by {001} facets
and nanocubes dominated by {012} facets were 0.13 and 0.7 h–1, respectively, and the turnover frequencies for the active sites
on {001} and {012} were 7.89 × 10–3 and 3.07×
10–3 s–1, yielding apparent activation
energies of 17.13 and 24.94 kcal/mol within the energetic span model,
respectively. Facet-specific differences appear to be directly not
linked with the simple aerial cation site density but instead with
their extent of undercoordination. By establishing this linkage, the
findings lay a foundation for predicting the photocatalytic degradation
efficiency for the myriad of possible hematite nanoparticle morphologies
and more broadly help unveil key reactions at the interface that may
govern photocatalytic organic transformations in natural and engineered
aquatic environments.