title: Atomic Insights into Nanoparticle Formation of Hydroxyfluorinated Anatase Featuring Titanium Vacancies.
abstract: Anatase TiO2 with exposed highly reactive (001) surface is commonly prepared using solution-based synthesis in the presence of a fluorinating agent acting as a structure-directing agent. Recently, the solvothermal reaction of titanium tetraisopropoxide in the presence of aqueous HF has resulted in the stabilization of an oxyhydroxyfluorinated anatase phase featuring cationic vacancies. In the present work, we have studied its formation mechanism, revealing a solid-state transformation of a highly defective anatase phase having a hydroxyfluoride composition that subsequently evolves through an oxolation reaction into an oxyhydroxyfluoride phase. Importantly, this work confirms that titanium alkoxide precursors can react with HF via a fluorolysis process yielding fluorinated molecular precursors, which further condense to produce new composition and structural features deviating from a well-ordered anatase network.
authors.affiliation: Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, CNRS, UMR 8234 , PHENIX, F-75005 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Université Bretagne Loire, Université du Maine, UMR CNRS 6283 , Institut des Molécules et des Matériaux du Mans (IMMM), Avenue Olivier Messiaen, 72085 Le Mans Cedex 9, France.
authors.forename: Monique
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Body
authors.affiliation: Université Bretagne Loire, Université du Maine, UMR CNRS 6283 , Institut des Molécules et des Matériaux du Mans (IMMM), Avenue Olivier Messiaen, 72085 Le Mans Cedex 9, France.
authors.forename: Christophe
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Legein
authors.affiliation: X-ray Science Division, Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory , Argonne, Illinois 60439, United States.
authors.forename: Olaf J
authors.initials: OJ
authors.lastname: Borkiewicz
authors.affiliation: Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, CNRS, UMR 8234 , PHENIX, F-75005 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Damien
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dambournet