Ultrafine TiO2 nanofibers for photocatalysis

Abstract

We report a simple synthesis route for producing ultrafine porous TiO 2 nanofibers ($10 nm diameters) from electrospun rice-shaped TiO 2 nanostructures. The rice-shaped TiO 2 obtained by annealing the as-spun TiO 2 -PVAc composite nanofibers was treated with concentrated alkali (with KOH under hydrothermal conditions) followed by acid treatment and low temperature sintering. The alkali treatment produces the titanate (K 2 Ti 3 O 7 ) which undergoes exchange of ions (protons) during the acid treatment resulting in H 2 Ti 3 O 7 . The heat treatment of the protonated titanate (H 2 Ti 3 O 7 ) results in their conversion to ultrafine TiO 2 (titanate-derived TiO 2 ) nanofibers. The rice-shaped TiO 2 and the titanate-derived TiO 2 nanofibers were characterized by SEM, TEM, XRD, XPS, Raman and BET measurements and the latter has $2.5 times higher surface area than the former. The TiO 2 nanofibers showed superior photocatalytic applications than the commercial P-25 TiO 2 .

Recent Advances in the Synthesis of Metal Oxide Nanofibers and Their Environmental Remediation Applications

“…Among them, TiO2 and ZnO are the most extensively used due to their superior chemical stability, low toxicity, low cost, and extraordinary photocatalytic activity [154,155]. Recently, ultrafine porous TiO 2 nanofiber diameters in the range of 10 nm were produced from electrospun rice-shaped TiO 2 nanostructures [156]. The rice-shaped TiO 2 achieved by heating the as-spun TiO 2 -polyvinyl acetate composite nanofibers in air followed hydrothermal treatment, acid treatment, and low-temperature sintering.…”

An Overview on Graphene-Metal Oxide Semiconductor Nanocomposite: A Promising Platform for Visible Light Photocatalytic Activity for the Treatment of Various Pollutants in Aqueous Medium

“…The surface area was increased by 2.5 times after the nanofiber formation of TiO 2 . The results showed that the photodegradation of MO was found to be higher than bare TiO 2 (P-25) nanoparticles [ 32 ]. GO/TiO 2 of different composition ratios were tested and the formulation of catalyst with 1.2 times higher photocatalytic activity than commercial photocatalyst was reported.…”

Fabrication of heterojunction MnTiO3–TiO2-decorated carbon nanofibers via electrospinning as an effective multifunctional photocatalyst

“…Approximately 1%-20% of the worldwide dye production from industries is released into water as industrial effluent [1][2][3]. Industrial effluent-through oxidation, hydrolysis, or other chemical reactions-produces toxic metabolites in wastewater [4][5][6]. According to the UNESCO World Water Assessment Programme (2003), nearly 2 million tons of water per day are discharged from industries and agricultural fields [7].…”