Influence of Surfactant on the Crystal Form and Photocatalytic Properties of Nano-TiO<sub>2</sub>

Abstract

The nano-TiO2 was prepared by adding surfactant chitosan and sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (DBS) under hydrothermal conditions. The influence of chitosan and DBS on the crystal form and photocatalytic properties of TiO2 was discussed. Chitosan acted as the chelant in the reaction, while DBS played the function of preventing aggregation of powder and increasing the degree of crystallization. The fixed calcination temperature was 500°C. The crystallite size could reach about 40.1nm upon the addition of 1g chitosan, and the catalytic efficiency was 51.89%. The crystallite size was about 45.8nm upon the addition of 1g DBS, and the catalytic efficiency was 48.13%. The nano-TiO2 had smaller particle size when chitosan was added under the same reaction conditions.