Abstract
Versatile and direct synthesis of water-dispersible titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles in the presence of functionalized poly(ethylene oxide)s (PEO) having carboxylic acid groups is presented. The functionalized PEOs, such as PEO-folate conjugate and PEO-b-poly(maleic acid) (PEO-b-PMAc) as polymeric surfactants, were employed for in situ synthesis of TiO2 nanoparticles through hydrolytic sol-gel process of titanium tetrachloride as a precursor in eco-friendly alcoholic media at a relatively low temperature. Both of the two polymers were found to be very effective for stabilizing TiO 2 nanocrystals, exhibiting not only fairly good photocatalytic activities but also water-dispersible property. The core TiO2 crystallites in the size range of 8∼11 nm could be readily controlled in ethanol at a relatively low reaction temperature (70°C), irrespective of the incipient reaction condition, which showed mixed polymorphs. The TiO 2 nanoparticles consist of a few percentages (<10%) of brookite and mostly anatase phases. This process provides a simple and useful in situ preparative route to obtain water-dispersible TiO2 nanoparticles. [Figure not available: see fulltext.]
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 445-456 |
Number of pages | 12 |
Journal | Macromolecular Research |
Volume | 22 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2014 Apr |
Keywords
- functionalized poly(ethylene oxide)s
- photocatalytic activity
- simple synthesis
- titanium dioxide nanoparticles
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Chemical Engineering
- Organic Chemistry
- Polymers and Plastics
- Materials Chemistry