Characterization and photocatalytic properties of nanoporous titanium dioxide layer fabricated on pure titanium substrates by the anodic oxidation process

Nanoporous titanium oxide (TiO₂) layers were fabricated on commercially pure titanium (Cp-Ti) substrates by the anodic oxidation method under a potentiostatic regime. Anodic oxidation was performed in an aqueous solution containing 1 wt% hydrofluoric acid at room temperature for 30 min. Subsequently one of the anodized samples was annealed at 480 C for 2 h in air in order to obtain anatase transformation and increased crystallinity. The average pore diameter of both anodized and anodized+annealed samples were found to be nearly 52 nm and 66 nm, whilst the average inter-pore distances were approximately 65 nm and 76 nm, respectively. Characterization of nanoporous TiO₂ layers was carried out through X-ray diffractometer (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and UV visible spectroscopy. Effects of heat treatment on properties such as crystallinity, morphology and photocatalytic activity were investigated in details. Finally photocatalytic degradation ratios and changes in degradation kinetics under the presence of both anodized and anodized+annealed catalysts were calculated. Depending on the obtained results, the annealed film with anatase structure demonstrated highly efficient photacatalytic performance.