International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR) ISSN (Online): 2319-7064 Index Copernicus Value (2015): 78.96 | Impact Factor (2015): 6.391 Volume 5 Issue 11, November 2016 www.ijsr.net Licensed Under Creative Commons Attribution CC BY Synthesis and Characterization of Controlled Size TiO 2 Nanoparticles via Green Route using Aloe vera Extract Abdul Khadar 1 , Dilip Kumar Behara 2 , Meda Kalyan Kumar 3 1, 2, 3 Department of Chemical Engineering, J.N.T.U.A. College of Engineering, Anantapuramu, India Abstract: Titanium dioxide is an important semiconductor material for wide range of solar energy conversion applications. However, it is limited due to its high bandgap as well as high charge carrier recombination rate under illumination. This can be overcome partly by controlling the size of the particle via green synthesis route using Aloe vera gel extraction, wherein the kinetics and thermodynamics are equally modulated. The synthesized particles were characterized using different characterization techniques such as SEM, TEM, XRD, UV-Vis, and FTIR. The outcomes of present work will help to design more pronounced synthesis protocols for production of highly mono dispersed TiO 2 nanoparticles for various electro/photoelectrochemical applications. Keywords: 1. Introduction Our environment is suffering huge damage by the release of large amount of hazardous chemicals, gases or substances into the environment due to rapid industrialization and urbanization. Therefore there is an urgent to learn about the use of natural products for development of advanced functional nanomaterials [1]. Nanotechnology is the manipulation of matter on an atomic molecular and super molecular scale, ranging in dimensions 1 to 100 nm. It is one of the most active research areas in modern material science. It is the study of extremely small things and can be used across all the science fields such as chemistry, biology, physics, material science and engineering [2]. Titanium dioxide is a solid inorganic substance. It is a white color metal oxide.TiO 2 is poorly soluble, non-flammable and thermally stable. It is not classified as hazardous according to the United Nations (UN) Globally Harmonized System (GHS) of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals [3]. It can exhibit three different phases in nano- range at the different temperatures, such as anatase, rutile and brookite. Among these phases, Anatase has been proved to have extraordinary chemical and physical properties for environmental remediation [4]. It is also having high quality properties such as hydrophobicity, non-wettability and large band gap. Hence, it is used in the various industrial applications such as dye sensitized solar cell, photo catalysis, self-cleaning, charge spreading devices, chemical sensors, microelectronics, electrochemistry, anti bacterial products and textiles [5-8]. Traditionally most of the metal and metal oxide nanoparticles were routinely synthesized by various physical and chemical methods. Some of the commonly used synthetic methods are non-sputtering, solvothermal, reduction, sol-gel technique and electrochemical technique [9-12]. But these methods are costly, toxic, high pressure, high energy requirement, difficult separation and potentially hazardous. The green synthesis process is eco-friendly technique due to use of extracts of plant (leaves, flower, seed and peels), bacteria, fungi and enzymes for synthesis of titanium dioxide nanoparticles instead of large quantity of chemicals [13]. Green synthesis provides more advantages over physical methods and chemical methods because it is very cost effective, easy process and scalable for large scale production. This method does not require for high temperature, high pressure, costly equipment and hazardous chemicals. The present work is based on the Aloe vera plant extract. Aloe vera is oldest medicinal plant ever known. It is most applied medicinal plant belonging to succulent plant species. This species is frequently cited as being used in herbal medicines since the beginning of the first century AD. It is a stemless plant growing to 60-100 cm (24-39 in) tall and the leaves are thick and fleshy, green to grey-green, with some varieties showing white flecks on the upper and lower stem surfaces [14]. Aloe vera gel contains a large range of vitamins such as vitamin B12, vitamin A, other B-Group vitamins, vitamin C, vitamin E, folic acid and 19 of the 20 amino acids needed by the human body. Aloe is a powerful detoxifier, antiseptic, tonic for the nervous system, possesses immune boosting and anti-viral properties and improves digestion. Extracts of Aloe vera is a proven skin healer and help the skin injuries affected by skin irritations, insect bites, burns and cuts [15]. The Aloe vera extract contains water soluble substances like Aloe emodin, Chrysophonal, and Helminthospor. These compounds act as reducing agents to produce TiO 2 particles from the precursor [16,17]. The nanoparticles prepared will be used in photocatalytic applications such as degradation of dye and water splitting. The chosen dye is crystal violet and chosen substrate is Ti for degradation and water splitting studies respectively. The experiments are presently in progress. 2. Experiments Preparation of Aloe vera plant extract Fresh and healthy Aloe vera plant was collected from campus of JNTU Ananthapuramu, Andhra Pradesh. One of the selected leaves was cut and washed twice with tap water followed by distilled water to remove dust particles and Paper ID: ART20163265 1913