Facile cathodic electrosynthesis and characterization of iron oxide nano-particles

Fe2O3 nano-particles have been synthesized by simple cathodic electrodeposition from the low-temperature nitrate bath. The morphology and crystal structure of the obtained oxide powder were analyzed by means of scanning and transmission microscopy (SEM and TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Thermal behavior and phase transformation during the heat treatment of as-deposited sample were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogramimetric analysis (TGA). The results showed that the deposited Fe2O3 was composed of the nanoparticles with grain size of approximately 10–60 nm. A serious problem during cathodic electrodeposition of iron oxide was splashing of deposit into electrolyte due to its low adhesion. This problem was tackled by reducing the bath temperature and dielectric constant of solvent.