LAUSR

Platinum (Pt) based catalysts are widely used in petrochemical refinery, automotive emission control, and fuel cell applications [1]. However, large active surface area of Pt nanoparticles (NPs) catalysts tends to decrease drastically as a result of agglomeration into much larger particles at high temperature, shortening the catalyst lifetime. Therefore, Pt NPs are usually anchored on highly stable metal oxide supports to slow down the agglomeration and keep their activity [2]. TiO2 is an earth-abundant and chemically stable support for Pt based catalysts [3]. The physical-chemical and catalytic properties of Pt NPs have been reported as supported on titania of different crystalline forms including anatase, rutile, and brookite. However, the precursors of TiO2, such as titania hydrates, are not well studied as supports for noble metal NPs. Meanwhile, one-dimensional (1D) metal oxide nano-arrays have been studied as supports for Pt based catalysts for various reactions [4]. The well-defined 1D structures make it possible to make rational comparison between effects of different support structures on the sintering resistance of Pt NPs.