α-Fe2O3 Nanoparticles/Vermiculite Clay Material: Structural, Optical and Photocatalytic Properties

Abstract

Photocatalysis is increasingly becoming a center of interest due to its wide use in environmental remediation. Hematite (α-Fe2O3) is one promising candidate for photocatalytic applications. Clay materials as vermiculite (Ver) can be used as a carrier to accommodate and stabilize photocatalysts. Two different temperatures (500 °C and 700 °C) were used for preparation of α-Fe2O3 nanoparticles/vermiculite clay materials. The experimental methods used for determination of structural, optical and photocatalytic properties were X-ray fluorescence (ED-XRF), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry (EDS), N2 adsorption method (BET), diffuse reflectance UV-Vis spectroscopy (DRS), photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL) and photocatalytic reduction of CO2, respectively. The data from XRD were confronted with molecular modeling of the material arrangement in the interlayer space of vermiculite structure and the possibility of anchoring the α-Fe2O3 nanoparticles to the surface and edge of vermiculite. Correlations between structural, textural, optical and electrical properties and photocatalytic activity have been studied in detail. The α-Fe2O3 and α-Fe2O3/Ver materials with higher specific surface areas, a smaller crystallite size and structural defects (oxygen vacancies) that a play crucial role in photocatalytic activity, were prepared at a lower calcination temperature of 500 °C.

Evaluation of Photocatalytic Activity in Water Pollutants and Cytotoxic Response of α-Fe2O3 Nanoparticles

“…34 Using the same chemical method, α-Fe 2 O 3 samples were calcined, and crystallite sizes of 24 nm (500 °C) and 31 nm (700 °C) were obtained. 37 Therefore, it is evident that our results are comparable with those reported in the literature. Correlating the values from Table 1 with the Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) results (Supporting Information), a band of approximately 1500 cm –1 for samples at 300 °C suggests the presence of residual carbon from the synthesis method.…”

Highly Efficient Photocatalyst Fabricated from the Chemical Recycling of Iron Waste and Natural Zeolite for Super Dye Degradation

“…for Fe2O3 fabricated by many methods [16,33]. Based on the quantization effect, the decrease in crystallite size reported in XRD data can explain the rise in the bandgap of Fe2O3zeolite compared to Fe2O3 [34,35]. The studied optical properties suggest that Fe2O3-zeolite can be used for solar energy applications such as the photodegradation of organic dyes under sunlight.…”

Effect of Calcination Temperature on the Photocatalytic Activity of Nanostructures Synthesized by Hydrothermal Method from Black Mineral Sand

“…This irregular morphology is maintained with calcination at 200 and 700 °C (Figure d and 4e). The sintering is evident in calcined nanostructured material after calcination (Figure f) and the sizes of nanoparticles increases considerably reaching 80–100 μm . As a consequence, porous surface structures are formed due to loose aggregation between large crystallites.…”