Photocatalytic activity of TiO_2 supported SiO_2-Al_2O_3 aerogels prepared from industrial fly ash

A ternary composite of TiO2 and a SiO2-Al2O3 aerogel with good photocatalytic activity was prepared by a simple sol-gel method with TiO2 nanoparticles and SiO2-Al2O3 aerogels derived from industrial fly ash.The structural features of the TiO2/SiO2-Al2O3 aerogel composite were investigated by X-ray powder diffraction,Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy,transmission electron microscopy,gas adsorption measurements and diffuse reflectance UV-visible spectroscopy.The optimal conditions for photocatalytic degradation of 2-sec-butyl-4,6-dinitrophenol（DNBP],included an initial DNBP concentration of 0.167 mmol/L at pH = 4.86 with a catalyst concentration of 6 g/L,under visible light irradiation for 5 h.A plausible mechanism is proposed for the photocatalytic degradation of DNBP.Our composite showed higher photocatalytic activity for DNBP degradation than that of pure TiO2.This indicates that this material can serve as an efficient photocatalyst for degradation of hazardous organic pollutants in wastewater.

Preparation and Characterization of Alumina-coated Hollow Quartz Fiber Reinforced Al_(2)O_(3)-SiO_(2) Aerogel Composite

Al_(2)O_(3)–SiO_(2)sols were synthesized by using aluminum chloride hex hydrate and tetraethoxysilane(TEOS)as precursors,deionized water and ethanol mixture as the solvent,and propylene oxide as the coagulant aids.Alumina coatings were prepared on the surfaces of hollow quartz filament fiber,then a new lightweight and thermal insulating material were successfully prepared by impregnatingAl_(2)O_(3)–SiO_(2)sol into a needle fabric made by coated hollow quartz filament fiber.The coated quartz fiber,aerogels and composites were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR),X-ray diffraction(XRD),energy dispersive spectroscopy(EDS),nitrogen adsorption-desorption(BET),scanning electron microscopy(SEM),transmission electron microscopy(TEM),and tensile tests.The effects of different fiber and calcination temperatures on the microstructures and properties ofAl_(2)O_(3)–SiO_(2)composite aerogels were investigated.The test results indicate that the mechanical properties of the aerogels are improved by introducing quartz filament fabrics and the introduction of alumina coating improves the thermal stability of the material.Compared to other fibers,Al_(2)O_(3)-coated hollow quartz fiber has significant advantages as reinforcement for composite,and their tensile strength is well retained after high temperature heat treatment.

Structural Characteristics and Photocatalytic Activity of Ambient Pressure Dried SiO2/TiO2 Aerogel Composites by One-step Solvent Exchange/Surface Modification

An ambient pressure synthesis of SiO2/TiO2 binary aerogel was prepared through the low-cost precursors of titanium tetrachloride（TiCl4） and sodium silicate（Na2O·nSiO2）.After gelation,solvent exchange and surface modification were performed simultaneously and the modified gel was finally dried under ambient pressure.Microstructural analyses by transmission electron microscope（TEM） indicate that fabricated SiO2/TiO2 aerogel composite shows similar sponge-like nanostructure as silica aerogel,and the Brunauer-EmmettTeller（BET） analysis shows that the specific surface area of the composite reaches 605 m^2/g,and the average pore size is 9.7 nm.Such binary aerogel exhibits significant photocatalytic performance in this paper for treating model pollutant of methyl orange（MO）,and the decolorizing efficiency of MO is detected as 84.9%after 210 mins exposure to UV light irradiation.Degraded gel suspends in the water so as to separate from solution for reuse,and after 4 times recycling,70%degradation efficiency can be easily reached when composite catalyzed system is exposed for 210 mins under UV irradiation.

TiO2-PES Fibrous Composite Material for Ammonia Removal Using UV-A Photocatalyst

This study focused on the development and characterization of TiO2-PES composite fibers with varying TiO2 loading amounts using a phase inversion process. The resulting composite fibers exhibited a sponge-like structure with embedded TiO2 nanoparticles within a polymer matrix. Their photocatalytic performance for ammonia removal from aqueous solutions under UV-A light exposure was thoroughly investigated. The findings revealed that PeTi8 composite fibers displayed superior adsorption capacity compared to other samples. Moreover, the study explored the impact of pH, light intensity, and catalyst dosage on the photocatalytic degradation of ammonia. Adsorption equilibrium isotherms closely followed the Langmuir model, with the results indicating a correlation between qm values of 2.49 mg/g and the porous structure of the adsorbents. The research underscored the efficacy of TiO2 composite fibers in the photocatalytic removal of aqueous under UV-A light. Notably, increasing the distance between the photocatalyst and the light source resulted in de-creased hydroxyl radical concentration, influencing photocatalytic efficiency. These findings contribute to our understanding of TiO2 composite fibers as promising photocatalysts for ammonia removal in water treatment applications.

Grain Size and Wettability of TiO_2/SiO_2 Photocatalytic Composite Thin Filing

The uniform transparent TiO2/SiO2 photocatalytic composite thin films are prepared by sol-gel method on the soda lime glass substrates, and characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), BET surface area, FTIR spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). It was found that the addition of SiO2 to TiO2 thin films can suppress the grain growth of TiO2 crystal, increase the hydroxyl content on the surface of TiO2 films, lower the contact angle for water on TiO, films and enhance the hydrophilic property of TiO2 films. The super-hydrophilic TiO2/SiO2 photocatalytic composite thin films with the contact angle of 0((o) under bar) are obtained by the addition of 10%-20% SiO2 in mole fraction.

Preparation of TiO_2/SiO_2 Aerogels by Non-supercritical Drying Method and Their Photocatalytic Activity for Degradation of Pyridine

TiO2/SiO2 aerogels with different molar ratio of SiO2/TiO2 were prepared via non-supercritical method using tetrabutyl titanate and silica sols as raw materials. The samples were characterized by TEM, SEM, BET, IR, XRD and so on. The results indicate that the BET surface area of TiO2/SiO2 aerogels calcined at 550℃ which consisted of anatase structure of TiO2 with narrow distribution pores of 5-25 nm is as high as 357.89 m2·g-1. For the photocatalytic degradation of pyridine, the catalytic activities of TiO2/SiO2 aerogels are much higher than that of TiO2 powder. The photocatalytic activity of TiO2/SiO2 aerogels calcined at 800℃ is the optimum. The higher the content of SiO2, the higher the photocatalytic activity of TiO2/SiO2 aerogels. The cost for preparation of the aerogels is greatly reduced by using non-supercritical drying method, and the aerogels are hopefully applied in the treatment of industrial waste water such as coking effluent treatment.

Preparation of hollow B–SiO2@TiO2 composites and their photocatalytic performances for degradation of ammonia-nitrogen and green algae in aqueous solution

Hollow B–SiO2@TiO2 composites were prepared by the wet chemical deposition method starting from TiCl4 and hollow B–SiO2 microspheres.TiO2 layers composed of anatase TiO2 nanoparticles were coated on the surfaces of the hollow B–SiO2 microspheres probably through the formation of Ti—O—Si and Ti—O—B bonds.A great number of—OH groups were also present at the TiO2 coating layers.The presence of Ti—O—Si bonds and Ti—O—B bonds resulted in the formation of defects in the TiO2 coating layers,which decreased the band gap of the TiO2 coating layers to ca.3.0 eV and endowed the TiO2 coating layers with visible light absorption performance.The buoyancy hollow B–SiO2@TiO2 composites exhibited high photocatalytic activities for the degradation of ammonia-nitrogen and green algae.The conversion of ammonia-nitrogen reached 65%when the degradation of ammonia-nitrogen(43 mg·L-1 at pH value of 8)was catalyzed by the B–SiO2@TiO2(100:10)composite under the simulated solar light irradiation at 35°C for 660 min.The green algae(5 mg·L-1)were almost completely degraded over the B–SiO@TiO2(100:20)photocatalyst under the visible light irradiation at 35°C for 510 min.

Preparation and Adsorption Property of Hydrophobic SiO_2 Aerogels Modif ied by Methyl Triethoxysilane

The hydrophobic SiO2 aerogels were prepared by in-situ polymerization sol-gel method and supercritical drying of ethanol method with tetraethylorthosilicate（TEOS） as silica source, methyl triethoxysilane （MTMS） as modifier, ethanol as solvent. Moreover, the structure and adsorption property of SiO2 aerogels were also studied. As results, the surface area of SiO2 aerogels was 863.59 m2/g, the pore volume was 3.57 cm3/g, and the contact angle was 150 °. Adsorption intensity of silica aerogels for organic liquid （alkanes, benzene compounds, and nitro-compounds） is bigger than that of activated carbon. The mass of the liquid absorbed increased linearly with the surface tension of the liquid. The lower surface tension and boiling point are, the shorter desorption time is. After regenerating 10 times, nitromethane regeneration rate remain the same, and almost more than 94%. So SiO2 aerogels have good absorption and regeneration property.

Preparation of Supermacroporous Composite Cryogel Embedded with SiO_2 Nanoparticles

Supermacroporous composite cryogels embedded with SiO2 nanoparticles were prepared by radical cryogenic copolymerization of the reactive monomer mixture of acrylamide（AAm） and N,N-methylene-bis-acrylamide（MBAAm） containing SiO2 nanoparticles（mass ratios of nanoparticles to the monomer AAm from 0.01 to 0.08） under the freezing-temperature variation condition in glass columns.The properties of these composite cryogels were measured.The height equivalent to theoretical plate（HETP） of the cryogel beds at different liquid flow rates was determined by residence time distribution（RTD） using tracer pulse-response method.The composite cryogel matrix embedded with the mass fraction of SiO2 nanoparticles of 0.02 presented the best properties and was employed in the following graft polymerization.Chromatographic process of lysozyme in the composite cryogel grafted with 2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propanesulfonic acid（AMPSA） was carried out to evaluate the protein breakthrough and elution characteristics.The chromatography can be carried out at relatively high superficial velocity,i.e.,15 cm·min-1,indicating the satisfactory mechanical strength due to the embedded nanoparticles.

PREPARATION AND CORROSION RESISTANCE OF NiP/TiO_2 COMPOSITE FILM ON CARBON STEEL IN SULFURIC ACID SOLUTION

A NiP/TiO2 composite film on carbon steel was prepared by electroless plating and sol-gel composite process. An artificial neural network was applied to optimize the prepared condition of the composite film. Corrosion behavior of the NiP/TiO2 composite film was investigated by polarization resistance measurement, anode polarization, ESEM （environmental scanning electron microscopy） and EIS （electrochemical impedance spectroscopy） measurements. Results showed that the NiP/ TiO2 composite film has a good corrosion resistance in 0.5mol/L H2SO4 solution. The element valence of the composite film was characterized by XPS （X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy） spectrum, and an anticorrosion mechanism of the composite film was discussed.

Fabrication and characterization of SiO_(2(f))/Si)_3N_4 composites

A silicon dioxide fiber-reinforced silicon nitride matrix （SiOJSi3N4） composite used for radomes was prepared by chemical vapor infiltration （CVI） process using the SiCl4-NH3-H2 system. The effects of the process conditions, including infiltration temperature, infiltration time, and gas flux were investigated. The energy dispersion spectra （EDS） result showed that the main elements of this composite contained Si, N, and O. The X-ray diffraction （XRD） results indicated that phases of the composite before and after treatment at 1350℃ were all amorphous. A little fiber pull-out was observed on the cross section of the composite by scan electron microscope （SEM）. As a result, the composite exhibited good thermal stability, but an appropriate interface was necessary between the fiber and the matrix.

Preparation and characterization of ZrO_2/TiO_2 composite photocatalytic film by micro-arc oxidation

ZrO2/TiO2 composite photocatalytic film was produced on the pure titanium substrate using in-situ Zr（OH）4 colloidal particle by the micro-arc oxidation technique and characterized by scanning electron microscope （SEM）, energy dispersive X-ray （EDX）, X-ray diffraction （XRD） and ultraviolet-visible （UV-Vis） spectrophotometer. The composite film shows a lamellar and porous structure which consists of anatase, futile and ZrO2 phases. The optical absorption edge of film is shifted to longer wavelength when ZrO2 is introduced to TiO2. Furthermore, the photocatalytic reaction rate constants of degradation of rhodamine B solution with ZrO2/TiO2 composite film and pure TiO2 film under ultraviolet irradiation are measured as 0.0442 and 0.0186 h 1, respectively.

The effects of radiation damage on power VDMOS devices with composite SiO_2-Si_3N_4 films

Total dose effects and single event effects on radiation-hardened power vertical double-diffusion metal oxide semiconductor（VDMOS） devices with composite SiO2-Si3N4 film gates are investigated.The relationships among the important electrical parameters of the samples with different thickness SiO2-Si3N4 films,such as threshold voltage,breakdown voltage,and on-state resistance in accumulated dose,are discussed.The total dose experiment results show that the breakdown voltage and the on-state resistance barely change with the accumulated dose.However,the relationships between the threshold voltages of the samples and the accumulated dose are more complex,and not only positively drift,but also negatively drift.At the end of the total dose experiment,we select the group of samples which have the smaller threshold voltage shift to carry out the single event effect studies.We find that the samples with appropriate thickness ratio SiO2-Si3N4 films have a good radiation-hardening ability.This method may be useful in solving both the SEGR and the total dose problems with the composite SiO2-Si3N4 films.

Nanoindentation Study on Mechanical Properties of Nano-SiO2/Dental Resin Composites

The micro/nano-scale indentation tests were performed to explore the performance of bisphenol-α-glycidyl methacrylate (Bis-GMA)/triethylene glycol dimethacrylate (TEGDMA) dental resin composites. The effect of the filling content of nano-SiO2 particles on the mechanical properties of the dental composites was studied as well. The experimental results showed that the incorporation of the nano-SiO2 particles at low concentrations (up to 10 wt.%) can apparently increase the hardness and elastic modulus of the dental rein composites. The plasticity index indicates a best elastic recovery capability at a proper amount (4 wt.%) of the nanoparticles. Combined with the infrared spectrum, the mechanical enhancement mechanisms of the dental resin composites were analyzed.

Photocatalytic activity and kinetics for acid yellow degradation over surface composites of TiO_2-coated activated carbon under different photocatalytic conditions

TiO2-coated activated carbon surface （TAs） composites were prepared by a sol-gel method with supercritical pretreatment. The photocatalytic degradation of acid yellow （AY） was investigated under UV radiation to estimate activity of catalysts and determine the kinetics. And the effects of parameters including the initial concentration of AY, light intensity and TiO2 content in catalysts were examined. The results indicate that TAs has a higher efficiency in decomposition of AY than P25, pure TiO2 particles as well as the mixture of TiO2 powder and active carbon. The photocatalytic degradation rate is found to follow the pseudo-first order kinetics with respect to the AY concentration. The new kinetic model fairly resembles the classic Langmuir-Hinshelwood equation, and the rate constant is proportional to the square root of the light intensity in a wide range. However, its absorption performance depends on the surface areas of catalysts. The model fits quite well with the experimental data and elucidates phenomena about the effects of the TiO2 content in TAs on the degradation rate.

Fracture Mechanism of 3D, Five-directional Braided (SiO_2)_f /SiO_2 Composites Prepared by Silicasol-infiltration-sintering Method

Three-dimensional （3D） five-directional braided （SiO2）/SiO2 composites were prepared by silicasol-infiltration-sintering （SIS） method. The flexural properties and microstructures were studied. The flexural strength and flexural elastic modulus were found to be 73 MPa and 12 GPa, respectively. The results of stress vs deflection curve and SEM examinations revealed that the fracture mechanism of 3D, five-directional braided （SiO2）/SiO2 composite was a mixture mode of ductile and brittle. The ductile mode was attributed to the weak bonding strength of fiber/matrix at low temperature. The brittle fracture might be caused by the propagation of micro defect or crack, which existed in the as-prepared composites for the ten-cycle process.

Photocatalytic and Thermal Insulating Performances of Fiber Reinforced Hierarchical TiO_2/SiO_2 Xerogel Composites Synthesized by Ambient Drying Route

Silica( SiO_2) based aerogel/xerogel materials have been received ever-growing attentions for versatile applications. However,the widespread applications are narrowed by the inert properties,fragile and brittle natureof silica materials and cumbersome preparation processes. In this paper,titania( TiO_2) was introduced into SiO_2 matrix to form photocatalytic hybrid gels. The TiO_2/SiO_2 composites were then reinforced by the impregnation of various fibrillary reinforcements,such as glass,mullite mineral and ceramic fibers. The properties of the composites were studied systematically in terms of fiberstability,microstructure,chemical interaction and thermal conductivity. The final xerogel composites displayed improved monolithic geometry,satisfied thermal conductivity(0. 09-0. 25 W·m^(-1)·K^(-1)) and optimized photocatalytic performance(85% removal of model pollutant of methyl orange( Mo)),which could be expected to be a feasible route to multi-functional building facades in the future.

The influence of ablation products on the ablation resistance of C/C-SiC composites and the growth mechanism of SiO_2 nanowires

Ablation under oxyacetylene torch with heat flux of 4186.8（10%kW/m2 for 20 s was performed to evaluate the ablation resistance of C/C-SiC composites fabricated by chemical vapor infiltration（CVI） combined with liquid silicon infiltration（LSI） process.The results indicated that C/C-SiC composites present a better ablation resistance than C/C composites without doped SiC.The doped SiC and the ablation products SiO2 derived from it play key roles in ablation process.Bulk quantities of SiO2 nanowires with diameter of 80 nm-150 nm and length of tens microns were observed on the surface of specimens after ablation.The growth mechanism of the SiO_2 nanowires was interpreted with a developed vapor-liquid-solid（VLS） driven by the temperature gradient.

Sol-Gel Preparation of TiO2/SiO2 Nanocomposites and Their Application in Self- cleaning Textiles

The present study involves the preparation of TiO 2/ SiO 2nanocrystals and their application in self-cleaning wool-polyester fabrics.The TiO 2/ SiO 2nanocrystals were successfully synthesized and deposited onto wool-polyester fabrics using the low-temperature sol-gel technique.The as-prepared nanocomposites and the nanocomposites coated samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction( XRD) and scanning electron microscopy( SEM),respectively.The XRD and SEM results showed that the single-phase anatase nanocrystallites were formed and loaded on the fabric surface successfully.The photocatalytic activities of TiO 2-coated and TiO 2/ SiO 2-coated wool-polyester fabrics were measured by studying photodegradation of methylene blue dye.Comparison of the photocatalytic activity of the coated samples reveals superiority of TiO 2/ SiO 2modified sample with respect to that of pure TiO 2modified sample.Our observations indicate that by applying this technique to the fabrics,self-cleaning materials can be designed for practical application.

Preparation of Al_2O_3-SiO_2-TiO_2-ZrO_2 Composite Ceramic Membranes by Sol-Gel Method

Al 2O 3-SiO 2-TiO 2-ZrO 2 supported membranes were prepar ed by Sol-Gel method. These composite ceramic membranes are level, even and no macro crack. There exist several crystalline phases such as Al 2O 3, TiO 2(a natase), Al 2SiO 5, and ZrO 2 in these membranes. Changing the molar ratio of Al∶Si∶Ti∶Zr,the kinds and content of crystal phases of composite membranes could be different, which may lead to a variety of microstructure of membranes. The surface nanoscale topography and microstructure of membranes were investiga ted by XRD,SEM,AFM,EPMA. The effects of additives and heat treatments on the sur face nanoscale topography and microstructure of composite ceramic membranes were also analyzed.