Optimization of the Dehydration Temperature of Goethite to Control Pore Morphology

This study optimizes the dehydration temperature of goethite to control pore morphology. The pore morphology was characterized by using transmission electron microscopy and the nitrogen adsorption method. When the goethite was dehydrated at 200–250°C, slit-like pores with a width lesser than 2 nm were formed along the [010] direction. These slit-like pores changed to spherical micropores (300–500°C), and eventually disappeared (600–800°C). Compared to the synthetic goethite, natural goethite has a lower crystallinity and smaller primary particle size of under 100 nm. The natural goethite before dehydration contained 4 nm pores as cracks that remained even after heating to 800°C. In the case of natural goethite, the optimum dehydration temperature for higher surface area and pore volume was 350°C, which was higher than that of 250°C for the synthetic goethite.