Abstract
Current synthesis processes for titanium dioxide ($TiO_2$) nanoparticles require expensive precursors or templates as well as complex steps and long reaction times. In addition, these processes produce highly agglomerated nanoparticles. In this study, we demonstrate a simple and continuous approach to synthesize $TiO_2$ nanoparticles by a salt-assisted ultrasonic spray pyrolysis method. We also investigate the effect of salt content in a precursor solution on the morphology and size of synthesized products. The synthesized $TiO_2$ nanoparticles are systematically characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron micrograph, and UV-Vis spectroscopy. These nanoparticles appear to have a single anatase phase and a uniform particle-size distribution with an average particle size of approximately 10 nm. By extrapolating the plots of the transformed Kubelka-Munk function versus the absorbed light energy, we determine that the energy band gap of the synthesized $TiO_2$ nanoparticles is 3.25 eV.