Low temperature hydrothermal synthesis of monodispersed flower-like titanate nanosheets

Monodispersed flower-like titanate superstructure was successfully prepared by simple hydrothermal process without any surfactant or template. N2-sorption analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) observation of as-synthesized product revealed the formation of flower-like titanate with diameter of about 250–450 nm and BET surface area (SBET) of 350.7 m2 g−1. Upon thermal treatment at 500 °C, the titanate nanosheets were converted into anatase TiO2 with moderate deformation of their structures. The as-prepared flower-like titanate showed high photocatalytic activity for H2 evolution from water splitting reaction. Moreover, the sample heat treated at 500 °C exhibited higher photocatalytic activity than that of commercial TiO2 anatase powder (ST-01).