A facile bottom-up method for synthesis of peroxo-potassium titanate nanoribbons and visible light photocatalytic activity derived from a peroxo-titanium bond

Low-dimensional titanate nanostructures are gaining attention as a promising material for various photocatalytic applications. However, these conventional titanium oxide-based materials cannot utilize visible light because of their wide bandgap, and their synthesis generally requires high-alkali (10 mol L(−1)) and high-temperature (160–200 °C) conditions. Here, we report facile bottom-up synthesis for the visible light-activated peroxo-titanate nanoribbon (PTNR). The use of the peroxo-titanium complex ion containing the potassium ion as a precursor can induce the formation of a layered potassium titanate structure (K(2−x)H(x)Ti(2)O(5)) based on the self-organization reaction between titanium complex ions and potassium ions under mild synthetic conditions (0.29–4.39 mol L(−1) KOH, 100 °C). Furthermore, the requirement of potassium ions in the formation of layered potassium titanate was stoichiometrically examined. The layered titanate crystals could be grown anisotropically, which depended on the radius of the cation used. Our results newly revealed that the larger radius of the interlayer cation promotes anisotropic crystal growth. As a result, in the case of the potassium base, a nanoribbon structure with a higher aspect ratio and larger specific surface area than those of lithium and sodium bases was formed. The formed peroxo-titanium functional groups significantly reduced the bandgap of titanate to 2.64 eV. In a photocatalytic decolorization test, the PTNR showed excellent photocatalytic performance based on the large surface area and enhanced light absorption in the visible light range while still performing well under UV light. These findings show not only that the proposed synthetic process has a low environmental impact but also that it contributes to the development of highly functionalized materials for photochemical applications.