Facile synthesis of mesoporous core-shell TiO2 nanostructures from TiCl3

The present study reports the synthesis and formation process of mesoporous core-shell TiO2 nanostructures by employing a glucose-assisted solvothermal process using water-ethanol mixture as solvent and subsequent calcination process at 550 °C for 4 h. X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and nitrogen adsorption–desorption analysis were used to investigate the structural properties of these nanostructures. By optimizing the preparation conditions, especially the contents of water and ethanol in the mixture solvent, mesoporous core-shell TiO2 nanostructures were obtained. These mesoporous nanostructures have anatase phase and exhibit the superior photocatalytic activity. This synthesis route is facile due to the usage of stable and low-cost Ti precursor such as TiCl3 and is thus applicable for large-scale production.