Synthesis and properties of nanostructured Cr-doped hematite fibres

Cr-doped α-Fe2O3 fibres were synthesized by combining electrospinning and the thermal treatment of electrospun composite fibres at 500 °C. XRD analysis showed the formation of solid solutions with a corresponding small decrease in the unit-cell volume due to a difference between the ionic radii of Fe3+ and Cr3+ cations. Mossbauer spectroscopy showed that the incorporation of Cr3+ into the α-Fe2O3 crystal structure induced a decrease in the hyperfine magnetic field. Doping of α-Fe2O3 with Cr3+ also influenced the shape and position of IR bands in relation to reference α-Fe2O3 fibres in the corresponding FT-IR spectra. The FE-SEM images of Cr-doped α-Fe2O3 fibres showed that they consisted of interconnected nanoparticles and possessed a hollow substructure. The photocatalytic degradation of rhodamine B using electrospun fibres was also investigated.