Synthesis of quasi-oriented α-MoO3 nanobelts and nanoplatelets on TiO2 coated glass

We report on a new method to produce quasi-oriented α-MoO3 nanobelts on TiO2 coated glass substrates. Using a simple yet efficient wet-chemical method with subsequent calcination, various morphologies of α-MoO3 including oriented nanobelts, rods and platelets were produced. The crystal morphology can be controlled by changing the substrate and/or the process parameters. Some applications of the resulting structures were demonstrated by coating them with TiO2 and carbon. The photocatalytic activity of the TiO2 coated α-MoO3 nanobelts was several times higher than that of the smooth TiO2 coatings prepared on soda-lime glass. A very thin layer (20–30 nm) of carbon coated on nanobelts by sputtering resulted in a highly light absorbing film with an average reflectivity of 4%, while fluorosilane coated nanobelts showed superhydrophobic properties.