Synthesis and Characterization of Hollow Anatase TiO2 Spheres and its Application in the Photodegradation of [gamma]-Lindane under Ultraviolet Light

Hollow anatase titania spheres have been synthesized using hydrothermally-prepared carbon spheres as the template. Here, the combination of hydrothermal process with sol-gel followed by calcination in air was done in order to obtain hollow anatase TiO2 spheres by utilizing fructose and tetrabutyl titanate (TBT) as the precursors. The structure and morphology of the products were characterized using various techniques, including Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermal gravimetric and differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). XRD showed that all peaks of TiO2 correspond to anatase crystalline phase. The BET surface area of the hollow spheres was about 22 m2g-1. The photocatalytic activity of the hollow anatase TiO2 was measured under UV light using γ-lindane as the target pollutant and was compared to commercially available TiO2.