A novel modified polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membranes with adding alpha-Fe2O3 nanocrystals were prepared for the photocatalytic degradation of organic contaminants. The alpha-Fe2O3 nanocrystals entrapped PVDF membranes were characterized by XRD, SEM and TEM. The photocatalytic performance and antifouling property were studied by filtration and degradation of Congo red (CR) under visible light irradiation. The results show that the photocatalytic activity of the alpha-Fe2O3/PVDF membranes were significantly influenced by the morphology of alpha-Fe2O3 nanocrystals. The PVDF membrane with inclusion of alpha-Fe2O3 nanorods showed high degradation efficiency (90%) because of the higher surface Fe3+ density. The water flux and degradation kinetics of the composite membrane were also studied. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.