One-Step Synthesis of Spherical γ-Fe2O3 Nanopowders and the Evaluation of Their Photocatalytic Activity for Orange I Degradation

Maghemite (γ-Fe2O3) nanopowders were synthesized under aeration (oxidizing) conditions by aqueous synthesis in this study. The microstructures of the prepared powders were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and BET-BJH. The XRD analysis and the chemical exp...

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Main Authors: Chunhua Liang, Hui Liu, Jianmin Zhou, Xiaochun Peng, Haizhou Zhang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2015-01-01
Series:Journal of Chemistry
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2015/791829
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author Chunhua Liang
Hui Liu
Jianmin Zhou
Xiaochun Peng
Haizhou Zhang
author_facet Chunhua Liang
Hui Liu
Jianmin Zhou
Xiaochun Peng
Haizhou Zhang
author_sort Chunhua Liang
collection DOAJ
description Maghemite (γ-Fe2O3) nanopowders were synthesized under aeration (oxidizing) conditions by aqueous synthesis in this study. The microstructures of the prepared powders were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and BET-BJH. The XRD analysis and the chemical experiments showed that well-crystallized γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles were successfully obtained with a mean particle size of approximately 17 nm. The prepared γ-Fe2O3 was spherical with a BET surface area of 14.357 m2/g and a total pore volume of 0.050 cm3/g. Varying the reaction conditions, such as pH, temperature, and reaction time, we obtained crystallized γ-Fe2O3 powders with different crystallization extent and different particle sizes. When the pH of the reaction suspension was increased, the reaction time was prolonged, and the reaction temperature was increased, the γ-Fe2O3 powders underwent superior crystallization and had larger particle sizes. All the obtained γ-Fe2O3 powders had significant photocatalytic activities under both UV and visible light irradiation for Orange I degradation, and the powders with better crystallization and larger particle size had relatively lower activities for Orange I photocatalytic degradation. The one-step aqueous synthesis method presented in this paper may provide an advantageous pathway to synthesize large quantities of this important iron oxide.
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spelling doaj-art-c72b8defeffc44d782e6d0a6a2b2f9ee2025-08-20T02:19:44ZengWileyJournal of Chemistry2090-90632090-90712015-01-01201510.1155/2015/791829791829One-Step Synthesis of Spherical γ-Fe2O3 Nanopowders and the Evaluation of Their Photocatalytic Activity for Orange I DegradationChunhua Liang0Hui Liu1Jianmin Zhou2Xiaochun Peng3Haizhou Zhang4Department of Chemistry, Huaihua University, Huaihua, Hunan 418008, ChinaState Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Urban Ecological Environment Simulation and Protection, South China Institute of Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Environmental Protection, Guangzhou 510655, ChinaState Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Urban Ecological Environment Simulation and Protection, South China Institute of Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Environmental Protection, Guangzhou 510655, ChinaState Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Urban Ecological Environment Simulation and Protection, South China Institute of Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Environmental Protection, Guangzhou 510655, ChinaDepartment of Chemistry, Huaihua University, Huaihua, Hunan 418008, ChinaMaghemite (γ-Fe2O3) nanopowders were synthesized under aeration (oxidizing) conditions by aqueous synthesis in this study. The microstructures of the prepared powders were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and BET-BJH. The XRD analysis and the chemical experiments showed that well-crystallized γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles were successfully obtained with a mean particle size of approximately 17 nm. The prepared γ-Fe2O3 was spherical with a BET surface area of 14.357 m2/g and a total pore volume of 0.050 cm3/g. Varying the reaction conditions, such as pH, temperature, and reaction time, we obtained crystallized γ-Fe2O3 powders with different crystallization extent and different particle sizes. When the pH of the reaction suspension was increased, the reaction time was prolonged, and the reaction temperature was increased, the γ-Fe2O3 powders underwent superior crystallization and had larger particle sizes. All the obtained γ-Fe2O3 powders had significant photocatalytic activities under both UV and visible light irradiation for Orange I degradation, and the powders with better crystallization and larger particle size had relatively lower activities for Orange I photocatalytic degradation. The one-step aqueous synthesis method presented in this paper may provide an advantageous pathway to synthesize large quantities of this important iron oxide.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2015/791829
spellingShingle Chunhua Liang
Hui Liu
Jianmin Zhou
Xiaochun Peng
Haizhou Zhang
One-Step Synthesis of Spherical γ-Fe2O3 Nanopowders and the Evaluation of Their Photocatalytic Activity for Orange I Degradation
Journal of Chemistry
title One-Step Synthesis of Spherical γ-Fe2O3 Nanopowders and the Evaluation of Their Photocatalytic Activity for Orange I Degradation
title_full One-Step Synthesis of Spherical γ-Fe2O3 Nanopowders and the Evaluation of Their Photocatalytic Activity for Orange I Degradation
title_fullStr One-Step Synthesis of Spherical γ-Fe2O3 Nanopowders and the Evaluation of Their Photocatalytic Activity for Orange I Degradation
title_full_unstemmed One-Step Synthesis of Spherical γ-Fe2O3 Nanopowders and the Evaluation of Their Photocatalytic Activity for Orange I Degradation
title_short One-Step Synthesis of Spherical γ-Fe2O3 Nanopowders and the Evaluation of Their Photocatalytic Activity for Orange I Degradation
title_sort one step synthesis of spherical γ fe2o3 nanopowders and the evaluation of their photocatalytic activity for orange i degradation
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2015/791829
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