Investigating the self-clean property of TiO2/SiO2 hybrid coatings on polyester fibers

One of the most common methods to removed contaminations from different substrates is to use the photocatalysis properties of a thin TiO2 nanoparticles coating on that substrate. A thin layer of TiO2 nanoparticles are usually applied on any surface using the Solgel method. Polyester fabrics were modified with TiO2 and TiO2/SiO2 nanocomposites through a low-temperature sol–gel method, so the self-clean properties of TiO2/SiO2 hybrid coatings on polyester fibers were studied. Silica was used to reduce the tendering effect of TiO2 nanoparticles. Sol-gels from TiO2, SiO2, and their blends in different weight ratios of 20:80, 50:50 and 80:20 were prepared and coated on the fibers surfaces by immersion, padding, and curing. FTIR and ATR results confirm the appearance of TiO2 and SiO2 nanoparticles in the solgels adnd chemical bonds between the coating and fibers after the deposition of the TiO2/SiO2 solgels. XRD experiment revealed that the nano silica treatment only influenced the surface properties of TiO2 nanoparticles and not the morphology and crystalline structure. Surface morphology of polyester samples was analyzed through the SEM images and it is shown that adding SiO2 resulted in a more uniform coating with a higher thickness. Contact angle measurements showed higher hydrophilicity by increasing nano SiO2 content. The highest self-clean property under UV radiation was also seen for the 50:50 SiO2/TiO2 composition. Finally, the mechanical properties of coated fibers dropped under UV radiation and it is shown that SiO2 incorporation in the coating formulation resulted in a slower rate of decrease in mechanical properties upon UV radiation.