ENHANCED PHTOCATALYTIC ACTIVITY OF α-FE2O3 NANOPARTICLES USING 2D MOS2 NANOSHEETS

Abstract

α‒Fe2O3/MoS2 nanocomposites were synthesized via hydrothermal method and characterized in terms of crystal structure, particle size and morphology, elemental purity and optical properties. Results confirmed the formation of α‒Fe2O3/MoS2 nanocomposites containing hematite nanoparticles with average diameter of 40 nm and MoS2 nanosheets with hexagonal crystal structure and sheet thickness of < 10 nm. Optical band gap measurements revealed decrease of the band gap of α‒Fe2O3 nanoparticles from 2.65 to 2.15 eV upon loading MoS2 nanosheets. The as‒synthesized α‒Fe2O3/MoS2 nanocomposites showed a high absorption capability in the visible irradiation. Photocatalytic examinations showed over 98 % degradation of Rhudamine Blue (Rh B) organic dye within 75 min. α‒Fe2O3/MoS2 nanocomposites enhanced the rate of degradation as compared to pure α‒Fe2O3 nanoparticles and MoS2 nanosheets.