α-Fe2O3 nanostructures with different morphologies: Additive-free synthesis, magnetic properties, and visible light photocatalytic properties

Hematite (α-Fe2O3) nanostructures with different morphologies have been synthesized by a simple ethylene glycol (EG)/H2O system using FeCl3 and urea as raw materials without adding any additives. Structure and morphology of the products were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The results indicated that the as-prepared samples are α-Fe2O3 microflowers, nanospindles, nanoparticles and nanorhombohedra. The magnetic properties and visible light photocatalytic properties of the products were investigated. The magnetic hysteresis measurements showed interesting magnetic property evolution among these α-Fe2O3 products, which can be attributed to their superstructure or the shape anisotropy. The photocatalytic measurements indicated that the α-Fe2O3 samples exhibit good photocatalytic property for Rhodamine B.

► Four α-Fe2O3 nanostructures were synthesized by additive-free solvothermal process.
► Magnetic property and photocatalytic property were studied.
► Samples show different magnetic properties.
► α-Fe2O3 samples exhibit good photocatalytic property for Rhodamine B.