Effect of Nitrogen Doping on the Phase Evolution of the TiO2 Nanoparticles

Abstract

Recently photocatalytic materials have been used in variety of industrial applications. TiO2 is the only suitable photocatalytic material for industrial usage due to its benefits such as non-toxicity, stability, and low cost. TiO2 nanoparticles were successfully synthesized from titanium alkoxide precursor by sol-gel method. Effects of nitrogen doping on the microstructure and phase evolution of the TiO2 nanoparticles were investigated. The X-ray diffraction results of doped samples confirm the presence of anatase as the only crystalline phase. The addition of nitrogen in titania matrix leads to disappearance of rutile traces. The scanning electron microscopy show that TiO2 nanoparticle size decreases by increasing nitrogen doping. Furthermore, DSC-TG results reveal that the crystallization temperature of doped sample shifts to higher temperatures of about 100 °C.