Abstract
10 wt.% and 20 wt.%$Li-TiO_2$ composite powders are synthesized by a sol-gel method using titanium isopropoxide and $Li_2CO_3$ as precursors. The as-received amorphous 10 wt.%$Li-TiO_2$ composite powders crystallize into the anatase-type crystal structure upon calcination at $450^{\circ}C$, which then changes to the rutile phase at $750^{\circ}C$. The asreceived 20 wt%$Li-TiO_2$ composite powders, on the other hand, crystallize into the anatase-type structure. As the calcination temperature increases, the anatase $TiO_2$ phase gets transformed to the $LiTiO_2$ phase. The peaks for the samples obtained after calcination at $900^{\circ}C$ mainly exhibit the $LiTiO_2$ and $Li_2TiO_3$ phases. For a comparison of the photocatalytic activity, 10 wt.% and 20 wt.% $Li-TiO_2$ composite powders calcined at $450^{\circ}C$, $600^{\circ}C$, and $750^{\circ}C$ are used. The 20 wt.%$Li-TiO_2$ composite powders calcined at $600^{\circ}C$ show excellent efficiency for the removal of methylorange.
