Effect of 2-propanol and water contents on the crystallization and particle size of titanium dioxide synthesized at low-temperature

Two series of titanium dioxide, TiO2, powder were prepared at a temperature of 50 °C without any catalyst. The effects of 2-propanol and water contents on the formation of crystalline powder mixture of anatase and brookite were systematically studied. The characteristics of produced powder were determined by employing X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, nitrogen adsorption test and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The obtained results showed that increases in the amount of water used in the powder synthesis turned the product from amorphous to the crystalline anatase structure with small traces of brookite. The results also clearly showed that the use of 2-propanol in the synthesis hindered the crystallization of TiO2. Furthermore, the specific surface area of TiO2 nanopowder decreased and the particle size increased when more water was used in the synthesis. These results are presented and discussed in this paper.