Crystallization study of sol–gel un-doped and Pd-doped TiO2 materials Original Research Article

Sol–gel nanostructured titania materials have been reported to have applications in areas ranging from optics via solar energy to gas sensors. In order to enhance the photocatalytic activity, there are many studies regarding the doping of titanium dioxide (TiO2) material with either non-metals (S, C, N, P) or metals (Ag, Pt, Nd, Fe). The present work has studied some un-doped and Pd-doped sol–gel TiO2 materials (films and gels), with various surface morphologies and structures, obtained by simultaneous gelation of both precursors Ti(OEt)4 and Pd(acac)2. Their structural evaluation and crystallization behavior with thermal treatment were followed by DTA/TG analysis, infrared (IR) spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), spectroellipsometry (SE), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and atomic force microscope (AFM). The influence of Pd on TiO2 crystallization for both supported and un-supported materials was studied (lattice parameters, crystallite sizes, internal microstrains). The changes in the optical properties of the TiO2-based vitreous materials were correlated with the changes of the structure. The hydrophilic properties of the films were also connected with their structure, composition and surface morphology.