Effect of rGO–Fe2O3 nanocomposites fabricated in different solvents on the thermal decomposition properties of ammonium perchlorate

Abstract

rGO–Fe₂O₃ composites were prepared using different solvents (distilled water, ethanol, N-methylpyrrolidone, ethyl acetate, n-butyl alcohol and N,N-dimethylformamide) via a simple solvothermal method and characterized by SEM, TEM, XRD, FT-IR, Raman and XPS techniques. Then, the catalytic action of rGO–Fe₂O₃ composites (prepared in different solvents), GO, rGO and pristine Fe₂O₃ on the thermal decomposition of ammonium perchlorate (AP) were studied using a TG-DSC instrument. DSC results showed that GO, rGO, pristine Fe₂O₃ and rGO–Fe₂O₃ composites could effectively promote the thermal decomposition of AP. Additionally, rGO–Fe₂O₃ fabricated in N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) solvent possesses the best catalytic performance among the investigated materials. This result can be attributed to the better dispersibility of Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles on graphene oxide prepared in DMF solvent, which was confirmed by SEM and TEM imaging. The high temperature decomposition exothermic peak (HTP) and the apparent activation energy of AP are reduced by 119.6 °C and 173.3 kJ mol⁻¹, respectively, in the presence of Fe₂O₃–rGO (DMF) composite.