Abstract
TiO2 aggregates of controlled size have been successfully prepared by hydrothermal synthesis using TiO2 nanoparticles of different sizes as a building unit. In this work, different techniques were used to characterize the as-prepared TiO2 aggregates, e.g., X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Brunauer, Emmett and Teller technique (BET), field emission gun scanning electron microscopy (FEGSEM), electrochemical measurements etc. The size of prepared TiO2 aggregates varied from 10–100 nm, and their pore size from around 5–12 nm; this size has been shown to depend on synthesis temperature. The mechanism of the aggregate formations was discussed in terms of efficiency of collision and coalescence processes. These newly synthetized TiO2 aggregates have been investigated as potential negative insertion electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries. The influence of specific surface areas and pore sizes on the improved capacity was discussed—and conflicting effects pointed out.
Highlights
In materials science, recent research has been mainly devoted to the development of innovative strategies to prepare nanomaterials with desired properties
A synthesis of spherical TiO2 aggregates of controlled diameter and porosity was achieved using the hydrothermal method. This method can be applied in large-scale production of TiO2 electrode materials
It was demonstrated that the TiO2 aggregates were made of TiO2 nanoparticles as a building unit
Summary
Recent research has been mainly devoted to the development of innovative strategies to prepare nanomaterials with desired properties. Among these strategies, nanoparticle agglomeration appears to be a promising way to obtain materials with controlled architectures and desired properties. Combining nanoparticles with different physical and chemical properties offers a large number of possibilities, making it possible to tailor the properties of agglomerated materials. Compared to the bulk materials, this new configuration is more flexible for material preparation. It allows for the combination of different and even conflicting properties—such as large submicrometer-sized particles that do not lose their large surface area at nanoscale
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