Characterization of nanosized partly crystalline photocatalysts

A thorough analysis of nanosized partly crystalline photocatalysts has been carried out. X-ray diffraction (XRD), Small angle X-ray Scattering (SAXS), Scanning electron microscope (SEM), and BET measurements have been applied to study the particle properties of different photocatalysts. The study permitted the determination of absolute crystallinity of partly and fully crystalline photocatalysts by XRD. The absolute crystallinity was determined with CaF2 as a reference. SAXS measurements were used to study the morphology and to determine the primary particle size of the investigated photocatalysts. The study showed that the commercially available photocatalyst Hombikat UV100 consisted of a great fraction of amorphous material whereas Degussa P25 was found to be almost crystalline. A homemade sample was found to be 63% crystalline anatase and 37% amorphous. The study also revealed that there was a deviation between the primary particle size and the crystal size for the partly crystalline samples caused by the amorphous fraction; however, the fully crystalline Degussa P25 had agreement between the primary particle size and the crystal size.