Titanium Dioxide Nanomaterials: Synthesis, Properties, Modifications, and Applications

TiO(2) is one of the most studied compounds in materials science. Owing to some outstanding properties it is used for instance in photocatalysis, dye-sensitized solar cells, and biomedical devices. In 1999, first reports showed the feasibility to grow highly ordered arrays of TiO(2) nanotubes by a simple but optimized electrochemical anodization of a titanium metal sheet. This finding stimulated intense research activities that focused on growth, modification, properties, and applications of these one-dimensional nanostructures. This review attempts to cover all these aspects, including underlying principles and key functional features of TiO(2), in a comprehensive way and also indicates potential future directions of the field.

TiO2 nanotubes: synthesis and applications.

On the Controllable Soft-Templating Approach to Mesoporous Silicates

Pore size determination in modified micro- and mesoporous materials. Pitfalls and limitations in gas adsorption data analysis

This review analyses the literature from the early 1990s until the beginning of 2003 and covers the use of carbon nanotubes (CNT) and nanofibers as catalysts and catalysts supports. The article is composed of three sections, the first one explains why these materials can be suitable for these applications, the second describes the different preparation methods for supporting metallic catalysts on these supports, and the last one details the catalytic results obtained with nanotubes or nanofibers based catalysts. When possible, the results were compared to those obtained on classical carbonaceous supports and explanations are proposed to clarify the different behaviors observed.

Carbon nanotubes and nanofibers in catalysis

Well crystallized nanoscale tubular materials have been synthesized via the reaction of TiO2 crystals of either anatase or rutile phase and NaOH aqueous solution. The atomic structure of the synthesized tubular material is imaged by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and the composition of individual tubular structures is determined using selected area energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). Our results show that the tubular materials are well crystallized tubes with an average diameter of about 9 nm and little dispersion, and are composed of mainly titanium and oxygen. The atomic ratio of O/Ti is found, however, to vary from tube to tube. Detailed electron and x-ray diffraction studies show that the structure of our titanium oxide nanotubes do not agree with those made of TiO2 crystals with either anatase or rutile phase. HRTEM observations revealed that the titanium oxide nanotubes usually have multiple shells, in analogy with multiwalled carbon nanotubes, but the shell spacin...

Preparation and structure analysis of titanium oxide nanotubes

Carbon nanotubes (CNT) were used as support medium to prepare Co catalysts for the selective dehydrogenation of cyclohexanol. Due to the unique structure and electronic property of CNT, Co/CNT possessed less acid sites than Co/activated carbon (AC). It seems to be easier to form multi-point complexes on Co/CNT than on Co/AC, resulting in a little higher selectivity to cyclohexanone and different distribution of by-products. The effect of K addition, attributed to electronic promotion, was also stronger on Co-K/CNT than on Co-K/AC.

Cyclohexanol dehydrogenation over Co/carbon nanotube catalysts and the effect of promoter K on performance

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes, produced from catalytic decomposition of C2H2, were pre-oxidized by boiling nitric acid before being used as support media in a Co/carbon-nanotube monometallic catalyst system. The microstructures of nanotubes and the cobalt particles were examined by using high-resolution transmission
 electron microscopy and X-ray diffractometry. Various structural modifications on the nanotubes, such as
 thinned tubes, tubes with holes, and stepped surface with open edges of graphitic sheets were observed. In comparison with cobalt particles on unoxidized nanotubes, the cobalt nanoparticles deposited on the oxidized nanotubes have much smaller size and higher dispersion, resulting in significantly better catalytic performance (18.4% higher in initial conversion) in dehydrogenation of cyclohexanol to cyclohexanone.

Zhong-Yong Yuan

Papers

Preparation and structure analysis of titanium oxide nanotubes

Cyclohexanol dehydrogenation over Co/carbon nanotube catalysts and the effect of promoter K on performance

Co/carbon-nanotube monometallic system: the effects of oxidation by nitric acid

A novel morphology of mesoporous molecular sieve MCM-41

A simple method for coating carbon nanotubes with Co–B amorphous alloy