Influence of the Percentage of TiO2 Doped into SiO2 Matrix on Photocatalysis

Abstract EN

The sol-gel process was employed in the preparation of titania-doped spherical nanosilica for application in photocatalysis.

To this end, the silica matrix was doped with 1 and 10% titania, and the catalytic activity of the resulting solids in the degradation of rhodamine was tested.

The synthesized materials were thermally treated at 120, 400, and 800°C.

Differential thermal analysis did not evidence the titania-phase transition from anatase to rutile.

Scanning electron microscopy revealed the formation of monodisperse spherical nanoparticles with sizes varying between 400 and 500 nm.

The UV-Vis absorption spectra showed that the silica doped with 10% titania promoted 86% rhodamine degradation within 90 minutes, as compared to 40% in the case of the silica containing 1% titania.

The silica matrix was demonstrated to affect the titania-phase transformation.