Uniform hematite α-Fe2O3 nanoparticles: Morphology, size-controlled hydrothermal synthesis and formation mechanism

Abstract Uniform hematite nanoparticles have been successfully synthesized through a surfactant mediated hydrothermal method. The structure and morphology of the products were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscope, scanning electron microscope, and Fourier transform infrared spectrometer. The results showed that the products were α-Fe2O3 nanoellipsoids of 115–140 nm in long axis and 60–80 nm in short axis. The growth mechanism of the products was proposed based on the experiments. Uniform nanospindles, nanoellipsoids, nanospheres, and nanopolyhedra with different sizes can be obtained by adjusting the reaction temperature, the amount of additive, and concentration of the reactants. The result may facilitate the exploration of controlled synthesis of α-Fe2O3 nanoparticles.