Abstract
A biphasic solvothermal reaction method has been used for the synthesis of TiO2 nanoparticles (NPs). In this method, hydrolysis and nucleation occur at the interface of organic phase (titanium (IV) n-propoxide and stearic acid dissolved in toluene) and water phase (tert-butylamine dissolved in water) resulting in the nucleation of the stearic acid-capped TiO2 NPs. These NPs are hydrophilic due to hydrophobic stearic acid ligands and could be dispersed in toluene, but not in water. These stearic acid-capped TiO2 NPs were surface-modified with 2,3-dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) in order to make them water soluble. The resultant TiO2 NPs were easily redispersed in water without any noticeable aggregation. The Rietveld profile fitting of X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern of the TiO2 NPs revealed highly crystalline anatase structure. The average crystallite size of TiO2 NPs was calculated to be 6.89 nm, which agrees with TEM results. These results have important implications for the use of TiO2 in biomedical, environmental, and industrial applications.
Highlights
TiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) have been widely investigated in the recent past due to their applications in a wide range of fields including solar cells [1], water photolysis for hydrogen production [2], sensors [3], and antireflective and photochromic devices [4]
During heating, hydrolysis and nucleation of the titanium (IV) n-propoxide occur at the interface of organic phase and water phase resulting in simultaneous nucleation of TiO2 NPs
The Rietveld profile fitting of X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern of prepared TiO2 NPs illustrated in Figure 1 shows the good quality of the fit
Summary
TiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) have been widely investigated in the recent past due to their applications in a wide range of fields including solar cells [1], water photolysis for hydrogen production [2], sensors [3], and antireflective and photochromic devices [4]. TiO2 has three wellknown crystallographic phases in nature: anatase, rutile, and brookite. Numerous methods for the synthesis of TiO2 NPs have been developed, such as hydrolytic sol-gel process [9], nonhydrolytic sol-gel process [10], hydrothermal methods [11], solvothermal methods [12], and so on. The synthesis of TiO2 nanoparticles generally involves hydrolysis and condensation of titanium precursors. The titanium precursors are extremely water sensitive; in conventional aqueous/alcohol-phase/sol-gel method in conventional solution-phase synthetic routes, small amount of water is used to inhibit the hydrolysis. Prepared TiO2 NPs suffer from poor crystallinity and inferior material properties as compared to those
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
