Adherent Nanoporous Anatase TiO₂ Membranes on Stainless Steel Substrates

Nanostructured TiO₂ is one of the most commonly used materials in photocatalytic applications and photochemical solar cells. This article describes a method to synthesize nanoporous anatase TiO₂ membranes directly on stainless steel (SS), an easily available substrate by anodization to form amorphous TiO₂ and a subsequent heat treatment to convert it into anatase, the photoactive phase. To obtain adherent membranes with interfaces that are resistant to peeling, both anodization and heat treatment parameters need to be optimized to obtain a heterostructure that contains a Ti film between the TiO₂ membrane and the substrate.