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"Nanomania" has reached the area of heterogeneous catalysis. Nanosized catalyst constituents are important for functions that require structural control over several scales of dimension. Nanocatalysis may be understood as a redefinition of catalyst synthesis: multidimensional structural control is exerted by considering catalysts as inorganic polymers rather than as close-packed crystals. Primary, secondary, and tertiary structural hierarchies translate into molecular building blocks and linkers, the defect structure of crystals, and particle morphology. High-throughput techniques and in situ synthetic analysis are the tools required to arrive at better defined catalytic materials that can fulfil the high expectations created by the incorporation of catalysts into the "nano" research field.

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The lack of stability is a challenge for most heterogeneous catalysts. During operations, the agglomeration of particles may block the active sites of the catalyst, which is believed to contribute to its instability. Recently, titanium oxide (TiO 2 ) was introduced as an alternative support material for heterogeneous catalyst due to the effect of its high surface area stabilizing the catalysts in its mesoporous structure. TiO 2 supported metal catalysts have attracted interest due to TiO 2 nanoparticles high activity for various reduction and oxidation reactions at low pressures and temperatures. Furthermore, TiO 2 was found to be a good metal oxide catalyst support due to the strong metal support interaction, chemical stability, and acid-base property. The aforementioned properties make heterogeneous TiO 2 supported catalysts show a high potential in photocatalyst-related applications, electrodes for wet solar cells, synthesis of fine chemicals, and others. This review focuses on TiO 2 as a support material for heterogeneous catalysts and its potential applications.

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