Synthesis of nanosized rutile TiO2 powder at low temperature

Nanosized rutile TiO2 powder has been synthesized by hydrolysis of Ti(OC4H9)4 solution at 40–50 °C. When the solution is neutral and basic, the hydrolysis product is a precipitate and the dried precipitate is amorphous. The rutile TiO2 cannot be obtained even when the dried precipitate is calcined at 600 °C. When the solution is acidic, the hydrolysis product is a sol. The ratio of Ti(OC4H9)4 to water and HNO3 has a great effect on the formation of TiO2. For a fixed ratio of water to Ti(OC4H9)4, the ratio of HNO3 to Ti(OC4H9)4 should be in a reasonable range in order to obtain the rutile TiO2 by drying the gel at 40–50 °C. If the ratio of water to Ti(OC4H9)4 increases, the ratio of HNO3 to Ti(OC4H9)4 should also be increased to get rutile TiO2. The mean particle size of the rutile TiO2 is about 50 nm even when the dried gel is calcined at 600 °C.