Hollow α-Fe2O3 quasi-cubic structures: Hydrothermal synthesis and gas sensing properties

Hierarchical alpha-Fe2O3 quasi-cubic structures were synthesized through a simple one-step hydrothermal method. The synthesis was performed in a water-isopropanol mixed solvent using ferrous chloride as the precursor free of any templates. The images of field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) indicated that the as-prepared alpha-Fe2O3 quasi-cubes had hollow interior. Moreover, these cubes showed a hierarchical structure, which were composed of densely packed nanoparticles. Subsequently, gas sensors based on the as-prepared hollow cubes were fabricated and their gas sensing performances were investigated. It was found that the gas sensor exhibited high response, good selectivity, fast response and recovery time to acetone at the operating temperature of 250 degrees C. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.