Electrospinning preparation and adsorption properties of La2O3 nanofibers and photoluminescence properties of La2O3: Eu nanofibers

• The multifunctional La 2 O 3 nanofibers were formed by electrospun, the adsorption capacity of phosphate was up to 172 mg P/g. • The nanoparticles stacking interactions help to enhance phosphate removal properties and improve their photoluminescence. • The nanofibers could remain fibrous in the water, which reduces the secondary pollution caused by separating the adsorbent. One-dimensional La 2 O 3 and La 2 O 3 :Eu nanofibers were prepared by a simple electrospinning method and heat treatment using polyvinylpyrrolidone as electrospinning template. The structures and morphologies of the products were characterized by the X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. It was found that the La 2 O 3 nanofibers were stacked with 30–55 nm La 2 O 3 nanoparticles in ordered arrangement, which highly exposed the active sites. In consequence, La 2 O 3 nanofibers showed rapid and high phosphate removal capacity due to the strong chemical affinity of phosphate/lanthanum bonds. The maximum adsorption capacity of phosphate on La 2 O 3 nanofibers reached up to 172 mg P/g at the initial phosphate concentration higher than 4.0 mg P/L, which is 1.17 times higher than the best reported value. In particular, the nanofibers could remain fibrous in the aqueous solution, which reduces the secondary pollution caused by separating the adsorbent from the aqueous solution. Lanthanum oxide nanofibers have the advantages of convenient recovery and resistance to anion interference. Furthermore, the La 2 O 3 :Eu nanofibers exhibited strong photoluminescence properties.