The structure of trititanate nanotubes

Abstract

A comprehensive chemical and structural analysis is made of a new type of trititanate nanotube, which is synthesized via the reaction of TiO2 particles with NaOH aqueous solution. It is found that the trititanate nanotubes are multi-walled scroll nanotubes with an inter-shell spacing of about 0.78 nm and an average diameter of about 9 nm. An atomic model of the nanotube is derived based on information from powder X-ray diffraction, selective-area electron diffraction, high-resolution electron microscopy and structure simulations. A model nanotube may be constructed by wrapping a (100) sheet of H2Ti3O7 along [001] with the tube axis parallel to [010].