Sol-Gel Synthesis of Mesoporous Titania using Nonsurfactant Organic Compounds as Templates

Organic-inorganic composite materials were prepared via HCl-catalyzed sol-gel reactions of tetrabutyl titanate at room temperature in the presence of nonsurfactant compounds, such as 2,2-bis(hydroxymethyl)propionic acid, glycerin and pentaerythritol, as templates or pore-forming agents. Removal of the nonsurfactant molecules from the composites by extraction with water resulted in mesoporous titania materials. Characterized with nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms, X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy, these materials were found to have large surface areas (∼300 m2/g) and pore volumes (∼0.25 cm3/g) as well as narrowly distributed pore diameters of around 3.2 nm. Similar results were also obtained when a neutral surfactant poly(ethylene glycol) was used as the templates. In the presence of templates, the titania materials obtained may contain crystalline anatase phase.