Self-Cleaning Properties of Vanadium Doped TiO&amp;lt;sub&amp;gt;2&amp;lt;/sub&amp;gt; Sol-Gel Derived Thin Films

Mehrnoush Mokhtarimehr,Akbar Eshaghi,Mahmoud Pakshir

doi:10.4236/njgc.2013.33014

Abstract

In this study, vanadium doped TiO2 thin films were deposited on glass substrates using a sol-gel dip-coating process. X-Ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and UV-Vis spectrophotometer were used to characterize the structural, chemical and the optical properties of the thin films. The photo-catalytic activities of films were investigated by methylene blue degradation. Water contact angle on the film surfaces was measured by a water contact angle analyzer. The results indicated that vanadium doping had a significant effect on the self-cleaning properties of TiO2 thin films.

Highlights

Self-cleaning applications using TiO2 thin films have become a subject of an increasing interest especially in recent years
A Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM) cross section image of a TiO2-V thin film is shown in the Figure 1
The results indicated that the film thicknesses were approximately 266 and 313 nm for pure TiO2 and V doped TiO2 film, respectively

Summary

Introduction

Self-cleaning applications using TiO2 thin films have become a subject of an increasing interest especially in recent years. The super-hydrophilic property of the TiO2 film on the surface allows water to spread completely across the surface rather than remain as droplets, making the surface easy to wash [4,5]. The photocatalytic and hydrophilic properties of the TiO2 coated surface allow the water to more wash away deposited particles. For efficient photo-reactive activity, it is necessary to extend the photo-response of TiO2 from the ultraviolet to the visible region by modification of its optical properties. Further studies have been carried out for modification of the optical properties of TiO2 absorption from the ultraviolet to the visible light region, by ion doping with transitional metals such as: Cr, Fe, Ni, V, Mn, and Cu [8,9,10]. V doped TiO2 thin films were pre-

Methods

Discussion

Conclusion