Tailoring of Low-Dimensional Titanate Nanostructures

The accurate tailoring of low-dimensional titanate nanostructures, including crystal nanotubes, nanowires, and amorphous nanoparticles was achieved by the control of the hydrothermal reaction conditions. The compositions, crystal structures, and formation mechanisms of these titanate nanomaterials, as well as the transformation relationships among them, were studied. It was found that crystal titanate nanotubes/nanowires were obtained by the hydrothermal treatment of either titania or amorphous titanate in moderate NaOH solution (5−12 M) and the reaction was accelerated by the increase of either temperature or NaOH concentration, while amorphous titanate nanoparticles were synthesized by the treatment of either titania or titanate nanotubes/nanowires in extreme NaOH condition (C_NaOH > 15 M).