Low temperature synthesis of single crystalline iron hydroxide and oxide nanorods in aqueous media

An easy aqueous 'one-pot' synthesis route for the fabrication of single crystalline uniform iron hydroxide (beta-FeOOH) nanorods at low temperature is reported. beta-FeOOH nanorods with diameters of 5-37 nm and lengths up to 45-185 nm were obtained by varying the reaction parameters. Addition of ethanol was found to be crucial to control the aspect ratio. After calcination at 250 degrees C for 2 h the as-obtained beta-FeOOH nanorods was converted to alpha-Fe2O3 nanorods. To the best of our knowledge, beta-FeOOH nanorods having diameter less than 6 nm is reported for the first time.