Well-Defined Crystalline TiO2 Nanoparticles Generated and Immobilized on a Colloidal Nanoreactor

We synthesized well-defined, crystalline TiO2 nanoparticles at room temperature by using spherical polyelectrolyte brush particles as a template. The template particles consist of a polystyrene core from which long chains of poly(styrene sodium sulfonate) are grafted. Tetraethylorthotitanate is hydrolyzed in the presence of brush particles leading to the formation of well-dispersed TiO2 nanoparticles (d = 4 similar to 12 nm). Wide-angle X-ray scattering demonstrates that anatase nanoparticles with high crystallinity have been generated at room temperature. The as-prepared TiO2 nanocomposites present high photocatalytic activity for the degradation of Rhodamine B under UV irradiation. Finally, mesoporous TiO2 structures with defined pore size are formed after calcination.