α-Fe2O3 fibers: An efficient photocatalyst for dye degradation under visible light

Abstract

In this work, α-Fe2O3 fibers were successfully prepared via Solution Blow Spinning, followed by calcination at 800 °C for 2 h, and applied in the photodegradation of organic dyes. The precursor solution was prepared by dissolving 0.8 M iron nitrate and 12 w/v% PVP in an acetic acid/water (2:1) mixture. The as-synthesized nanostructures were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) isothermal model, x-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), Mössbauer spectroscopy and magnetometry. The studies of photocatalytic degradation were performed using methylene blue (MB) and crystal violet (CV) dyes under visible and UV irradiation. The results indicated the formation of α-Fe2O3 fibers with a trigonal crystalline structure with an average diameter and BET surface area of 359 nm and 2.54 m2/g, respectively. The fibers showed a photodegradation efficiency of 66% and 48% for MB dye and 90% and 92% for the CV dye after 5 h of visible and ultraviolet light irradiation, respectively. The recycling studies indicated stability and efficiency after three cycles of degradation of the CV dye.