Preparation of TiO2 nanoparticles by submerged arc nanoparticle synthesis system

This study investigated the effects of process parameters on geometrical features of titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles synthesized by the submerged arc nanoparticle synthesis system (SANSS). The synthesis process involves vaporizing a pure titanium rod by a submerged arc in deionized liquid under a controlled vacuum environment, followed by rapid quenching of the vaporized titanium gas by a cooling system, thus forming nanocrystalline powders. Our experimental results revealed that the electric current for preparing the nanoparticle suspension had significant impact on the size, distribution and surface sphericity of the nanoparticles synthesized, while other process parameters including pulse duration and temperature of deionized water also had moderate influence on the geometrical properties. With the set of parameters selected through process analysis, TiO2 nanoparticles having an average particle diameter of 65 nm with a size disparity of 60 nm and particle sphericity of 3.8% can be synthesized.