Photocatalytic Degradation of Organics by Using Nanocrystalline Titania

Titanium dioxide nanoparticles were prepared by a modified sol-gel route. Titanium butoxide was used as precursor and nebulizer was used for a fine spray of particles. The prepared powders were characterized by FT-IR, SEM, XRD, and TGA-DTA methods. The results indicated that nanoparticles with small size and high surface area were synthesized. XRD result indicated that TiO2 nanoparticles were obtained in pure anatase crystalline form with a crystallite size of 40 nm. The catalytic activity of as-synthesized nanoparticles was tested for the degradation of formic acid and toluene.