Remarkable charge separation and photocatalytic efficiency enhancement through interconnection of TiO2 nanoparticles by hydrothermal treatment

Although tremendous effort has been directed to synthesizing advanced TiO2 , it remains difficult to obtain TiO2 exhibiting a photocatalytic efficiency higher than that of P25, a benchmark photocatalyst. P25 is composed of anatase, rutile, and amorphous TiO2 particles, and photoexcited electron transfer and subsequent charge separation at the anatase-rutile particle interfaces explain its high photocatalytic efficiency. Herein, we report on a facile and rational hydrothermal treatment of P25 to selectively convert the amorphous component into crystalline TiO2 , which is deposited between the original anatase and rutile particles to increase the particle interfaces and thus enhance charge separation. This process produces a new TiO2 exhibiting a considerably enhanced photocatalytic efficiency. This method of synthesizing this TiO2 , inspired by a recently burgeoning zeolite design, promises to make TiO2 applications more feasible and effective.