Hydrophobic TiO2–SiO2 composite aerogels synthesized via in situ epoxy-ring opening polymerization and sol-gel process for enhanced degradation activity. Issue 4 (March 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Parale, Vinayak G.; Kim, Taehee; Lee, Kyu-Yeon; Phadtare, Varsha D.; Dhavale, Rushikesh P.; Jung, Hae-Noo-Ree; Park, Hyung-Ho
• Is Part Of: Ceramics international. Volume 46:Issue 4(2020)
• Page Start: 4939
• Page End: 4946
• Publication Date: 2020-03
• Subjects: TiO2-SiO2 composite aerogel -- Anatase -- Sol-gel process -- Supercritical drying -- Photocatalysis; Ceramics -- Periodicals; Céramique industrielle -- Périodiques; Ceramics; Periodicals; Electronic journals; 666
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ceramint.2019.10.231
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0272-8842

Abstract

Abstract: TiO2 –SiO2 composite aerogels composed of an organic-inorganic molecular network were synthesized via an epoxy-ring opening polymerization and sol-gel procedure followed by supercritical drying. The ring opening polymerization and sol-gel reaction were performed using epoxy-functionalized (3-glycidyloxypropyl)trimethoxysilane and amine-functionalized 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane. This process was followed by hydrolysis and condensation of methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS) and titanium butoxide (TBO) in the presence of oxalic acid as a catalyst. The results revealed that the TBO:MTMS molar ratio plays an important role in enhancing the crystallinity, porosity, and surface area of the prepared composite aerogels. Anatase titania was obtained with the as-prepared supercritical dried aerogels and the photocatalytic performance of the aerogels was evaluated via the degradation of a methylene blue textile dye under ultraviolet-light irradiation. The results demonstrated that the TiO2 –SiO2 composite aerogel catalyst can yield 87% degradation with a high reaction constant (k = 1.18 × 10 −1 min −1 ). This approach provides a new method of synthesizing TiO2 –SiO2 composite aerogel photocatalysts.