A Novel Route to the Synthesis of Mesoporous Titania with Full Anatase Nanocrystalline Domains

A porous, high surface area TiO2 with anatase or rutile crystalline domains is advantageous for high efficiency photonic devices. Here, we report a new route to the synthesis of mesoporous titania with full anatase crystalline domains. This route involves the preparation of anatase nanocrystalline seed suspensions as the titania precursor and a block copolymer surfactant, Pluronic P123 as the template for the hydrothermal self-assembly process. A large pore (7–8 nm) mesoporous titania with a high surface area of 106–150 m2/g after calcination at 400°C for 4 h in air is achieved. Increasing the hydrothermal temperature decreases the surface area and creates larger pores. Characteristics of the seed precursors as well as the resultant mesoporous titania powder were studied using XRD analysis, N2-adsorption/desorption analysis, and TEM. We believe these materials will be especially useful for photoelectrochemical solar cell and photocatalysis applications.