Synthesis of nanocrystalline TiO2 with high photoactivity and large specific surface area by sol–gel method

Nano-TiO2 powder was prepared by sol–gel method with modified precursor, tetrabutyl titanate (TBT), and photocatalytic oxidation was applied in removal of organics in the powder. The microstructure of as-prepared nano-TiO2 was determined using UV–vis, TEM, XRD and BET. The results indicated that the nano-TiO2, with grain size of 3.8 nm and specific surface area of 359.1 m2/g, was composed of anatase alone, and that it exhibited significant blue-shift in its UV–vis spectrum. The decomposition of organics in the sample was systematically investigated using FT-IR and TG-DTA. According to the testing results, we could conclude that organics in the samples were completely eliminated by means of photocatalytic oxidation. With photocatalytic decoloration of active brilliant red X-3B in aqueous solution as model reaction, the photocatalytic activity of as-prepared nano-TiO2 was investigated and was compared with that of the samples experiencing heat treatment and Degussa P-25 as well. The experimental results indicated that the photoactivity of as-prepared nano-TiO2 is much higher than that of the samples experiencing heat treatment.