Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China.
Sci Rep. 2013;3:1411. doi: 10.1038/srep01411.
Surface structures and surface interactions are key factors that influence the reactivity and stability of nanomaterials. Combining experimental and theoretical investigations, we illustrate the roles of surface interactions in the formation and phase stability of an unusual TiO2(B) polymorph that preferentially exposes the plane of the highest surface energy. We find that the favorable bidentate adsorption of ethylene glycol on the TiO2(B)(010) plane enables the formation and confines the phase stability of TiO2(B) ultrathin nanosheets. The essence of such selective generation of the unusual nanostructure with ultrahigh purity both in phase and morphology lies in the specific adsorption driven by the matched interface structures. The general roles of structural match for the activity and stability in physical interactions are elucidated.
表面结构和表面相互作用是影响纳米材料反应性和稳定性的关键因素。通过实验和理论研究相结合，我们阐明了表面相互作用在形成和相稳定性方面的作用，形成了一种不寻常的 TiO2(B)多晶型物，该多晶型物优先暴露具有最高表面能的平面。我们发现，乙二醇在 TiO2(B)(010)面上的有利双齿吸附能够形成并限制 TiO2(B)超薄纳米片的相稳定性。这种具有超高纯度的不寻常纳米结构的选择性生成，无论是在相还是形态上，其本质都在于由匹配的界面结构驱动的特定吸附。阐明了结构匹配在物理相互作用中的活性和稳定性中的一般作用。
