Mesoporous titanium dioxide nanoparticles exhibiting bimodal pore size distributions and process for their production

1. An oxide of titanium in the form of a powder comprising generally uniform nanoparticle spheres in 100 percent anatase crystalline phase, said spheres being from 20 nm to 100 nm in size and exhibiting bimodal pore size distributions wherein each spherical particle contains generally uniform pores in the mesopore size range which have a uniform pore size distribution centered at a value between about 2 nm to about 12 nm and the spheres exhibit an inter-particle pore size distribution centered at a value between about 15 nm and about 80 nm.

2. The oxide of titanium in the form of a powder comprising generally uniform nanoparticle spheres as claimed in claim 1 having a size in the range of 50 nm, intra-particle mesopores centered at about 6 nm and inter-particle mesopores centered at about 35 nm.

3. The oxide of titanium in the form of a powder comprising generally uniform nanoparticle spheres as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the titanium has a crystallite size in the range of from about 4 nm to about 12 nm.

4. A titanium oxide product comprising a plurality of nanoparticle spheres as claimed in claim 1 , or claim 2 , having a pore volume in the range of from 0.2 to 0.6 cm 3 /g.

5. A titanium oxide product comprising nanoparticle spheres as claimed in claim 4 having bimodal pore size distributions centered at about 6 nm and about 35 nm, respectively, and having a pore volume in the range of about 0.6 cm 3 /g.

6. An oxide of titanium in the form of generally uniform nanoparticle spheres in 100 percent anatase crystalline phase having bimodal pore size distributions centered at 2 nm to 12 nm and 15 nm to 80 nm, respectively, and being from 20 nm to 100 nm in size wherein the nanoparticle spheres are prepared by:

(i) forming an aqueous solution of a water soluble compound of titanium at a concentration of from 0.5 to 1.5 moles per liter in the presence of an organic acid at an acid to titanium molar ratio of from 0.02 to 0.2;

(ii) heating the aqueous solution to a temperature in the range of from 70° C. to 80° C. and maintaining that temperature for a period of from 1 hour to 3 hours, and then heating the aqueous solution to a temperature in the range of from 100° C. up to the refluxing temperature and maintaining that temperature for an additional period of from 2 hours to 4 hours;

(iii) cooling the solution to room or ambient temperature, and separating the reaction product.

7. The oxide of titanium as defined in claim 6 wherein the reaction product is separated by (i) filtering; (ii) washing the separated reaction product to remove salts generated during the reaction sequence; and (iii) finishing the product by drying whereby water and organic contents are removed.

8. The oxide of titanium as defined in claim 7 wherein finishing is achieved by heating the product at an elevated temperature in the range of from 200° C. to 500° C. under a flow of air.