Surface-Modified TiO2@SiO2 Nanocomposites for Enhanced Dispersibility and Optical Performance to Apply in the Printing Process as a Pigment

• Published in: ACS omega Vol. 8; no. 22; pp. 20116 - 20124
• Main Authors: Wang, Lei, Xie, Guangyuan, Mi, Xiang, Zhang, Bin, Du, Yu, Zhu, Qiuyu, Yu, Zhicheng
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: American Chemical Society 06.06.2023
• ISSN: 2470-1343; 2470-1343
• DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.3c02679

The grafted modification TiO2@SiO2 composite was fabricated by a liquid-phase deposition method with Na2SiO3 and a grafting reaction with a silane coupling agent. First, the TiO2@SiO2 composite was prepared, and the effect of deposition rate and silica content on the morphology, particle size, dispersibility, and pigmentary property of TiO2@SiO2 composites was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and ζ-potential. The islandlike TiO2@SiO2 composite had a good particle size and printing performance compared with the dense TiO2@SiO2 composite. The presence of Si was confirmed by EDX elemental analysis and XPS, and a peak at 980 cm–1 belonging to Si–O was observed in the FTIR spectrum, confirming the presence of SiO2 anchored at TiO2 surfaces via Si–O–Ti bonds. Then, the islandlike TiO2@SiO2 composite was modified by grafting with a silane coupling agent. The effect of the silane coupling agent on the hydrophobicity and dispersibility was investigated. The peaks at 2919 and 2846 cm–1 belong to CH2 in the FTIR spectrum, and Si–C in the XPS confirmed the grafting of silane coupling agent to the TiO2@SiO2 composite. The grafted modification of the islandlike TiO2@SiO2 composite using 3-triethoxysilylpropylamine endowed it with weather durability, dispersibility, and good printing performance.