Study of phase development and thermal stability in as synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles by laser pyrolysis: ethylene uptake and oxygen enrichment

Abstract Laser pyrolysis has proven a viable and trustworthy method of TiO 2 nanoparticles fabrication, ensuring good quality and wide variety of nanoparticle morphologies and sizes. This work is aimed to phase control, experimentally studied, by parameter modulation, during one step laser pyrolysis synthesis or in combination with thermal annealing. High phase purity anatase and rutile TiO 2 nanoparticles, oxygen abundant, are synthesized from TiCl 4 and C 2 H 4 gas mixtures, in the presence of air as oxygen donor, under CO 2 laser radiation. The nano-titania samples are analyzed by X-ray Diffraction, EDAX, TEM and Raman spectroscopy and reveal good phase stability and distinct morphology. This study extends the method applicability onto rutile majoritarian TiO 2 synthesis and generation of thermally stable anatase titania, a well-known catalyst.