The key difference between titanium oxide and titanium dioxide is that the titanium oxide contains one oxygen anion per one titanium cation whereas the titanium dioxide contains two oxygen anions per one titanium cation.
Titanium is a chemical element having the chemical symbol Ti and the atomic number 22. It is a lustrous metal that falls under the category of transition metals. As a major characteristic, it has a high strength compared to its low density. This element can have several oxidation states, but the most stable oxidation state is +4. There are several oxides it can form such as titanium(II) oxide, titanium(III) oxide and titanium dioxide.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Titanium Oxide
3. What is Titanium Dioxide
4. Side by Side Comparison – Titanium Oxide vs Titanium Dioxide in Tabular Form
5. Summary
What is Titanium Oxide?
Titanium oxide is an inorganic compound having the chemical formula TiO. We name this compound as titanium monoxide or titanium(II) oxide. The molar mass of this compound is 63.87 g/mol. It appears as bronze crystals. Moreover, it has a high melting point which is 1,750 °C, and the density is 4.95 g/cm3. When considering the crystal structure of this compound, it has a cubic structure.
We can prepare this compound from titanium dioxide or from titanium metal as well. But we have to do this reaction at 1500 °C. Apart from that, acid solutions of this compound are stable for a short time, but later it will decompose to give hydrogen. This reaction is as follows:
2Ti2+(aq) + 2H+(aq) → 2Ti3+(aq) + H2(g)
What is Titanium Dioxide?
Titanium dioxide is an inorganic compound having the chemical formula TiO2. This is the naturally occurring oxide of titanium. Moreover, we name this compound as titanium(IV) oxide. The molar mass of this compound is 79.87 g/mol. It appears as a white solid. It has a high melting point which is 1,843 °C. The density of this compound varies according to the type of crystal structure in which it exists. For example, the density of the rutile crystal structure is 4.23 g/cm3 while the density of the anatase crystal structure is 3.78 g/cm3.
Figure 01: Titanium Dioxide White Solid
We can produce this compound from processing titanium bearing sand such as ilmenite mineral sand. When considering the major applications of this compound, it includes the production of titanium dioxide pigments that is important for the production of paints, paper, plastics, etc.
What is the Difference Between Titanium Oxide and Titanium Dioxide?
Titanium oxide is an inorganic compound having the chemical formula TiO whereas titanium dioxide is an inorganic compound having the chemical formula TiO2. Therefore, the titanium oxide contains one oxygen anion per one titanium cation but, the titanium dioxide contains two oxygen anions per one titanium cation. This is the key difference between titanium oxide and titanium dioxide. Also, because of this structure, they have different molar masses and different melting points as well. Moreover, the oxidation number of titanium in each compound is different from each other; the oxidation number of titanium in titanium oxide is +2 while the oxidation number of titanium in titanium dioxide is +4. This is another important difference between titanium oxide and titanium dioxide.
The below infographic tabulates the difference between titanium oxide and titanium dioxide in more detail.
Summary – Titanium Oxide vs Titanium Dioxide
Titanium oxide and titanium dioxide are important oxides of titanium chemical element. The key difference between titanium oxide and titanium dioxide is that the titanium oxide contains one oxygen anion per one titanium cation but, titanium dioxide contains two oxygen anions per one titanium cation.
Reference:
1. “Titanium(II) Oxide.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 19 Aug. 2018. Available here
2. “Titanium Dioxide.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Aug. 2018. Available here
Image Courtesy:
1.”Titanium(IV) oxide”By Walkerma at English Wikipedia. (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia