Versatile protein-templated TiO2 nanocomposite for energy storage and catalytic applications

Abstract

A protein-templated titania nanocomposite (PT-TiO2) was successfully synthesized by a water-free mechanochemical approach. A biomass valorization strategy was developed by employing egg white from expired eggs to control the morphology and textural features of the prepared titania. A remarkable enhancement of the surface area was achieved, in comparison with the synthesis of the material in absence of the biomass-derived template. Several techniques, such as scanning electron microscopy-mapping and CNHS analysis, supported the presence of carbon, nitrogen and sulfur residues in the obtained composite. Catalytic performance of PT-TiO2 was explored in the oxidation of diphenyl sulfide, displaying promising results in terms of conversion, selectivity and stability. The effect of the oxidant agent was additionally investigated by using hydrogen peroxide, urea hydrogen peroxide, oxygen and t-butyl-hydroperoxide. On the other hand, PT-TiO2 nanocomposite was successfully proved as anodic material for lithium-ion batteries delivering a reversible capacity of 107 mAh g–1 at 0.1C with an excellent Coulombic efficiency of 100% from the second cycle. In addition, the as-synthesized material showed significant capacity retention values of 76% among the 2nd cycle and 100th cycle. PT-TiO2 resulted to be a versatile material with potential catalytic and energy storage applications.