With vast literature displaying the versatility of titanium oxide (TiO2) as an effective photocatalyst, porous TiO2 has the potential to significantly boost the catalytic activity of this widely studied material. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have previously been shown to serve as viable templates for the isolation of porous titania. This talk will detail our efforts in utilizing a library of MOFs with varying topologies and pore sizes for the isolation of novel porous TiO2 phases. After adsorption of the titania precursor into the pores of these MOFs, a simple digestion of the framework yields porous TiO2 in high yield. In order to control the crystalline phase of porous TiO2, specific MOF templates were employed under precise hydrolysis conditions. It was ultimately found that utilization of HKUST-1 as a template afforded the metastable and rarer Brookite phase of TiO2 while MIL-101 templates afforded Anatase. More significantly, we have revealed a unique technique of external metal exchange with the Brookite phase, where even a negligible amount of metal inclusion facilitates reduction to black titania phases under very mild conditions. In addition to this, the metal exchanged Brookite is phase persistent, even after high-temperature reduction, and demonstrates increased efficiency in catalysis.

Metal-organic frameworks as templates for reactive mesoporous titania

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