Journal
CHEMISTRY-A EUROPEAN JOURNAL
Volume 22, Issue 48, Pages 17262-17268Publisher
WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH
DOI: 10.1002/chem.201603086
Keywords
carbon; cellulose; dehydration; nanostructures; photocatalysis
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Metal oxides and metal oxide/carbon composites are entering the development of new technologies and should therefore to be prepared by sustainable chemistry processes. Therefore, a new aspect of the reactivity of cellulose is presented through its solid/gas reaction with vapour of titanium(IV) chloride in anhydrous conditions at low temperature (80 degrees C). This reaction leads to two transformations both for cellulose and titanium(IV) chloride. A reductive dehydration of cellulose is seen at the lowest temperature ever reported and results in the formation of a carbonaceous fibrous solid as the only carbon-containing product. Simultaneously, the in situ generation of water leads to the formation of titanium dioxide with an unexpected nanoplate morphology (ca. 50nm thickness) and a high photocatalytic activity. We present the evidence showing the evolution of the cellulose and the TiO2 nanostructure formation, along with its photocatalytic activity. This low-temperature process avoids any other reagents and is among the greenest processes for the preparation of anatase and also for TiO2/carbon composites. The anisotropic morphology of TiO2 questions the role of the cellulose on the growing process of these nanoparticles.
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