TiO 2 and TiO 2–V 2 O 5 nanocrystals were prepared by coupling sol–gel and solvothermal methods, followed by heat-treatment at 400 C, after which the mean nanocrystal size was about 5 nm. The materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and solid state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. It was shown that while the TiO 2 phase was always anatase even after heat-treatment at 500 C, the presence of the vanadium oxide species enhanced the surface re …