Characterization of Agglomerated Nanosized Titanium(IV) Oxide Prepared by Two Pathways and Their Performance Toward Cu(II) Adsorption

ABSTRACT

Two different TiO₂ particles with nanodimensions were prepared by sol-gel (TO-S) and low temperature chemical precipitation method (TO-P) from a TiCl₄ precursor. As a result, the TO-S preparation was according to the “green chemistry” method because it did not involve any toxic or hazardous by-products. The average size of the nanoparticles of TO-S and TO-P were 27 and 12 nm, respectively. Agglomerates of these nanodimensional particles should have high surface area and can be useful for adsorptive removal of toxic species from aqueous solutions. Higher Cu(II) adsorption capacity of TO-P than TO-S may be attributed to the hydrated nature of the former material.

KEYWORDS:

• oxides
• precipitation
• sol-gel growth
• adsorption

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the head of the Department of Chemistry and Principal, Presidency College for providing the experimental facilities. The authors are also grateful to Mr. Harishankar Biswas of SINP for his help in Raman and AFM studies and to Prof. Madhusudan Roy of SINP for his help in DSC and TG studies.