Highly Transparent N-Type TiO₂ Coatings for Self-Cleaning Glass Application

Abstract:

Titanium dioxide (TiO₂) has been exploited extensively as it shows remarkable performance in photocatalytic applications. TiO₂ thin films can be deposited onto window glass which is workable for self-cleaning applications. In this article, we have studied the role of substrate temperature for spray pyrolysis (SP) of TiO₂ thin films for studying self-cleaning applications. For thin film deposition, TiO₂ sol is prepared by the sol-gel synthesis technique. The samples are deposited at room temperature and 250 °C, respectively. The samples are characterized via Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), and UV-Vis spectroscopy to determine the morphology, surface roughness, and optical properties of the thin films. SEM and AFM results show that samples deposited at 250 °C (pre-heated samples) have uniform size distribution, and defined grain boundaries, respectively. The results also show that the pre-heated sample is highly transparent in the visible region of the solar spectrum when analyzed by the steady-state UV-Vis spectrophotometer. The wettability of the prepared thin films is measured, and the results show that the pre-heated sample shows a hydrophilic character. The self-cleaning property of prepared thin films is evaluated by the photodegradation of Rhodamine B dye. It is observed that the pre-heated substrates show better photoactivity in presence of UV light irradiation. Hence, due to their hydrophilic nature and better photoactivity, these pre-heated thin films deposited by spray pyrolysis can be employed as efficient coatings for self-cleaning glass applications.

• Periodical: Key Engineering Materials (Volume 928)
• Pages: 191-197
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4028/p-j91b2a
• Online since: August 2022
• Authors: Muhammad Rabeel*, Ramsha Khan, Usman Ali, Sofia Javed, Muhammad Aftab Akram
• Keywords: Hydrophilicity, Photoactivity, Self-Cleaning Glass, Spray Coating, Spray Pyrolysis, Titania, Wettability

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