SYNTHESIS OF MESOPOROUS IRON OXIDE NANOPARTICLES FROM MESOPOROUS SILICA TEMPLATE VIA NANO-REPLICATION

Highly ordered mesoporous iron oxide (α-Fe2O3) material has been successfully obtained from mesoporous silica template, KIT-6 (3-D Cubic Ia3d symmetry), through nano-replication method. The mesoporous α-Fe2O3 material thus obtained exhibits well-defined mesopores (2.7 nm in diameter), high surface area (148 m2/g), high pore volume (0.47 cm3/g) and crystalline frameworks. The morphology of the mesoporous α-Fe2O3 material is very uniform in spherical shape of which the average particle size is about 100 nm in diameter.