Characterization of physicochemical properties of Pd/TiO 2 nanostructured catalysts prepared by the photodeposition method

In this work, the sol–gel and hydrothermal methods were used to synthesize TiO{sub 2}-nanostructured supports. The palladium supported on sol–gel TiO{sub 2} and on hydrothermal-method-TiO{sub 2} nanotubes was obtained by incorporating it through photodeposition. The characterization was performed by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, N{sub 2} physisorption, pulse chemisorption, ultraviolet–visible absorption spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Both sol–gel-palladium–TiO{sub 2} and palladium-nanotube samples showed different palladium dispersion and physicochemical properties. In the palladium-nanotube sample, high surface area (243 m{sup 2}/g), H{sub 2}Ti{sub 3}O{sub 7} stable phase, and low band gap energy (2.35 eV) were obtained. Palladium-nanotubes and palladium-TiO{sub 2}, used as reference samples, were prepared by wet impregnation. - Highlights: • The precursors of TiO{sub 2} nanotubes were synthesized by the sol–gel method. • TiO{sub 2} nanostructures showed improved textural and morphological properties. • Pd nanoparticles around 1 nm were obtained by the photodeposition method. • TiO{sub 2}-nanotube-based catalysts can be a powerful tool for facing air pollution.