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Oil-dispersed α-Fe2O3 nanocatalysts were prepared by coating α-Fe2O3 nanoparticles with oleic acid (OA). Mössbauer spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and field emission scanning electron microscopy were used to characterize α-Fe2O3 and α-Fe2O3@OA. Their impact on the oxidation process of heavy oil was evaluated using a porous medium thermo-effect cell and thermogravimetry–infrared spectroscopy coupled with isoconversional kinetic analysis. Compared with α-Fe2O3, α-Fe2O3@OA more efficiently catalyzed the combustion of heavy oil due to its good dispersion in heavy oil. α-Fe2O3 was found to be transformed into smaller size magnetite (Fe3O4), maghemite (γ-Fe2O3), and α-Fe2O3 during heavy oil combustion. Fe2O3@OA reduced the activation energy from a maximum of 537 to 246 kJ/mol, which considerably facilitates fuel formation and makes an easier transition from fuel formation to its combustion in the high-temperature oxidation (HTO) stage, thus shifting HTO into lower temperatures. These enhanced performances in the heavy oil combustion by α-Fe2O3@OA could be favorable for improving the efficiency of the in situ combustion (ISC) technique in oilfields.

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