A new electrochemical method to prepare mesoporous titanium(IV) oxide photocatalyst fixed on alumite substrate

A TiO2 film was deposited onto alumite using an electrochemical technique, where the initial electrodeposition was carried out by ac electrolysis in ( NH4)(2)[TiO(C2O4)(2)] solution, followed by pulse electrolysis in TiCl3. Th is is a new method to prepare a mesoporous TiO2 photocatalyst film consisti ng of nanosized particles and to directly fix them onto the alumite substra te (Al/Al2O3). The sizes of the TiO2 particles in the prepared film were ab out 5 nm, and they consisted of mixtures of the anatase, rutile, and amorph ous phases. This film had a high catalytic activity for the decomposition o f acetaldehyde even under fluorescent lamp illumination. Moreover, the prep aration cost is very low compared with other methods. Therefore, the prepar ed Al/Al2O3/TiO2 plate is very useful for the practical photodecomposition of chemical contaminants in the atmosphere. The mechanisms of the TiO2 depo sition and the photocatalysis are discussed.