Hydrothermal preparation of Fe2O3/graphene nanocomposite and its enhanced catalytic activity on the thermal decomposition of ammonium perchlorate

Fe2O3/graphene nanocomposite was prepared by a facile hydrothermal method, during which graphene oxides (GOs) were reduced to graphene with hydrazine and Fe2O3 nanoparticles were simultaneously anchored on graphene sheets. The morphology of the obtained Fe2O3/graphene nanocomposite was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). It was revealed by TEM images that Fe2O3 nanoparticles grew well on the surfaces of graphene. As much as I know, this new nanocomposite has not been investigated as a catalyst on the thermal decomposition of AP yet. In this work, the catalytic performance of the synthesized material on the thermal decomposition of ammonium perchlorate ( AP) was investigated creatively by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The results of DSC indicated that graphene obviously improved the catalytic activity of Fe2O3 on the thermal decomposition of AP due to its high specific area. (C) 2014 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.