Three-dimensionally ordered macroporous TiO2 photocatalyst

III-8: Three-dimensionally ordered macroporous TiO2 photocatalyst

S.Madhavi, C.Ferraris, and Tim White (MSE)

Abstract

Three-dimensionally ordered macroporous (3DOM) materials, synthesised from self-assembled silica or polymer sphere templates, are of considerable interest because of their potential application as photonic interconnects, membranes, catalysts, and bio-ecomaterials. These materials possess high porosity, low-density, 3D order and large effective surface area. We have synthesized 3DOM TiO2 of three different pore sizes, viz. 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0µm by colloidal crystal templating of polymer spheres and sol-gel infiltration of the void spaces. The rate of decomposition of methylene blue has been chosen as a model reaction to screen the photocatalytic activity of these materials. Preliminary results suggest the macroporous titania (1.0µm) is ~15% more active than conventional nanosized titania powder.