Application of pulsed chemical vapor deposition on the SiO_(2)-coated TiO_(2) production within a rotary reactor at room temperature

Pulsed chemical vapor deposition(P-CVD)is a promising technology for the surface modification of TiO_(2) particles.For the scale-up application of P-CVD,a custom-designed rotary reactor and corresponding coating process at room temperature was developed in the present work.The obtained SiO_(2)-coated TiO_(2) particles were characterized by various measures including high-resolution transmission electron microscope,Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy,X-ray diffraction,etc.The results illustrated that the SiO_(2) films with a thickness of(3.7±0.7)nm were successfully deposited onto the surface of TiO_(2) particles.According to the dye degradation tests and acid solubility measurement,the deposited film can effectively inhibit the photocatalytic activity and enhance the weatherability of the TiO_(2) particles.Zeta potential measurements showed that the SiO_(2)-coated TiO_(2) is possible to be stably dispersed in the pH range of 6.9–11.6.The coating process made the whiteness of TiO_(2) particles decreased slightly but still sufficient(97.3±0.1)for application.Furthermore,the properties of the TiO_(2) particles coated by PCVD were compared with the particles coated by traditional wet chemical deposition.It is shown that the P-CVD can produce thinner but denser films with better photoactivity suppression performance.The developed coating process within the rotary reactor was proved practically feasible and convenient for the scale-up production of SiO_(2)-coated TiO_(2) via P-CVD.