Simple hydrothermal synthesis and photocatalytic performance of coral-like BaTiO3 nanostructures

Coral-like BaTiO3 nanostructures were successfully synthesized via a simple hydrothermal route at 150 degrees C for 15 h employing BaCl2, tetrabutyl titanate [(C4H9O)(4)Ti] and NaOH as reactants without the assistance of any surfactant or template. The phase of the as-obtained BaTiO3 was characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD). Energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and (high-resolution) transmission electron microscopy (TEM/HRTEM) were employed for the composition and morphology analyses of the final product. Some factors influencing the formation of the coral-like BaTiO3 nanostructures were investigated, including the amount of NaOH, the barium ion source, and the reaction temperature and time. Experiments showed that the as-prepared coral-like BaTiO3 nanostructures presented good photocatalytic activity for the degradation of methyl orange (MO) dye under the irradiation of artificial sunlight. It was found that the photocatalytic activity of the coral-like BaTiO3 nanostructures could be affected by the pH value of the system.