Titanate nanorods, nanoribbons, and nanofibers synthesized by hydrothermal treatment are being investigated by several groups. Similar to titanate nanotubes, with average diameter of 9 nm, there is a strong controversy regarding the composition and microscopic formation mechanism of these non-hollow nanostructures (nanoribbons). In this article, we report the synthesis and characterization of the titanate nanostructures by exploiting some aspects that were not exploited so far. By using X-ray diffraction, FT-infrared and Raman spectroscopies and electron microscopy, we have studied the intermediate structure and morphology between nanotubes and the non-hollow nanostructures. Our findings give further evidence that the transformation of nanotubes into non-hollow nanostructures is induced by a sequence of both oriented attachment and Ostwald rippening cooperative mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]