Preparation, characterization and photocatalytic activity of TiO2 formed from a mesoporous precursor

A mesoporous TiO2 precursor has been prepared by the hydrothermal condensation of tetrabutyltitanate in presence of an alkylamine template by three different methods. The surfactants were removed from as-synthesized TiO2 by calcination and solvent extraction methods. A potential photocatalyst, predominantly present as an anatase phase, was produced in the latter case. The samples were characterized by XRD, FT-IR, low-temperature N-2 adsorption-desorption measurement and solid state UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The photocatalytic activities of all TiO2 samples were compared using the degradation of phenol as a probe reaction.