Synthesis of BiFeO3 nanoparticles by a low-heating temperature solid-state precursor method

BiFeO 3 nanoparticles were synthesized through low-heating temperature solid-state precursor method. Solid-state Bi(NO 3 ) 3 ·5H 2 O, Fe(NO 3 ) 3 ·9H 2 O and NaOH experience a chemistry reaction at room temperature, forming a nanometer-sized precursor, which is conducive to lowering the crystallization temperature of BiFeO 3 . Perovskite-type BiFeO 3 forms at a much lower crystallization temperature at 425   °C without addition of organic agent. This method can greatly reduce the energy consumption and prevent Bi volatilization. The product was characterized by a variety of techniques such as TGA–DSC, XRD, SEM, FT-IR, VSM and UV–vis spectroscopy. The particle morphology changes from an average length of 80–100 to 400–500   nm as the annealing temperature increases from 450 to 600   °C. BiFeO 3 prepared by this method can be an appropriate visible-light photovoltaic and photocatalytic material due to its strong absorption band in the visible region and smaller band gap (∼2.06   eV, BiFeO 3 prepared at 600   °C).