Iron oxide (Fe(2)O(3)) is a potential substitute for other materials of hydrogen storage by a redox process of Fe(3)O(4) (initial Fe(2)O(3))+4H(2) <-> 3Fe+4H(2)O to store and release hydrogen. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of iron oxides with Mo additive for this purpose, the behaviors of unmodified and Mo-modified Fe(2)O(3) samples (Fe(2)O(3)-none, Fe(2)O(3)-5%Mo, Fe(2)O(3)-8%Mo and Fe(2)O(3)-10%Mo), which were prepared by hydrothermal synthesis, were investigated for hydrogen production at oxidation step. Of all the samples, Fe(2)O(3)-8%Mo was the most effective for improving H(2) production at temperatures <300 degrees C. The kinetic data at oxidation step obtained by isothermal experiments could be well fitted by the conventional and Jander equation. The apparent activation energy at oxidation step is about 55.53-65.30 kJ mol(-1) for unmodified Fe(2)O(3) and about 36.17-45.19 kJ mol(-1) for Fe(2)O(3)-8%Mo based on the conventional and Jander models. The cooperative effect of active Fe and Mo additive on the H(2)O decomposition may be the main reason of lowering the activation energy. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.