Electrospinning of magnetical bismuth ferrite nanofibers with photocatalytic activity

Bismuth ferrite (BiFeO3) nanofibers were prepared by combining the electrospinning technique with sol–gel chemistry. The structural features of the as-prepared nanofibers were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The obtained BiFeO3 nanofibers showed a rhombohedral perovskite structure after getting annealed in an argon atmosphere. Both SEM and TEM results showed that BiFeO3 fibers were composed of nanocrystalline particles. The photocatalytic behaviors of BiFeO3 nanofibers were investigated by the degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB). BiFeO3 nanofibers exhibited excellent catalytic activity under UV light irradiation, as well as under visible light irradiation in the presence of H2O2. The catalyst was further examined by magnetic measurement. The BiFeO3 nanofibers exhibited a ferromagnetic behavior at room temperature, which was associated with the nanometer-size of BiFeO3 particles. This provides an easy and efficient way to recover BiFeO3 photocatalysts from the suspension system by applying an external magnetic field.