Deposition of photocatalytically active TiO₂films by inkjet printing of TiO₂nanoparticle suspensions obtained from microwave-assisted hydrothermal synthesis

Abstract

In this paper, we present an inkjet printing approach suited for the deposition of photocatalytically active, transparent titanium oxide coatings from an aqueous, colloidal suspension. We used a bottom-up approach in which a microwave-assisted hydrothermal treatment of titanium propoxide aqueous solutions in the presence of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid and triethanolamine was used to create suspensions containing titania nanoparticles. Different inkjet printing set-ups, electromagnetic and piezoelectric driven, were tested to deposit the inks on glass substrates. The presence of preformed titania nanoparticles was expected to make it possible to reduce the heating temperature necessary to obtain the functionality of photocatalysis which can widen the application range of the approach to heat-sensitive substrates. We investigated the crystallinity and size of the obtained nanoparticles by electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering. The rheological properties of the suspensions were evaluated against the relevant criteria for inkjet printing and the jettability was analyzed. The photocatalytic activity of the obtained layers was analyzed by following the decomposition of a methylene blue solution under UV illumination. The influence of the heat treatment temperature on the film roughness, thickness and photocatalytic activity was studied. Good photocatalytic performance was achieved for heat treatments at temperatures as low as 150 °C, introducing the possibility of using this approach for heat-sensitive substrates.

Flexible Approach to Sensors Arrays Nanopatterning for Real-Time Water Contaminants Monitoring Platform

“…The mild environments afforded by ink-jet printing make it particularly suited for handling biological samples, since contamination can be minimized and waste be reduced. Another advantage is the accurate placement of pre-determined quantities of material, which can be performed without the need for previous patterning steps [4][5][6][7]. Piezoelectric inkjet printing of polymers and proteins holds great promise for fabrication of miniaturized bioelectronic devices, such as biochips and biosensors, and was recently employed for the development of a glucose biosensor [8].…”

“…Piezoelectric inkjet printing of polymers and proteins holds great promise for fabrication of miniaturized bioelectronic devices, such as biochips and biosensors, and was recently employed for the development of a glucose biosensor [8]. Inkjet printing is in line with industrial needs for robust, high volume and precise deposition of advanced liquid solutions including containing photocatalytically active TeO2 nanoparticles [5]. Screen-printing thick-film technology has emerged as a cost-effective method for the production of sensors, since silicon based approaches are only feasible if the volumes produced are high.…”

Chemical solution deposition of functional ceramic coatings using ink-jet printing

“…[15] Only recently there has been a growing interest in using the deposition technique for functional ceramic coatings and patterns. [1, 3,5,[16][17][18][19] The biggest advantage of ink-jet printing as a one-step process is its low investment cost, scalability, the more efficient use of materials and the high control of the thickness of the coating. [15] The fluid properties of newly developed inks are analyzed to determine the printability and is expressed with dimensionless constants, like the Reynolds and Weber numbers.…”

Thin YBa2Cu3O7-δpatterns by Chemical Solution Processing using Ink-Jet Printing

“…The other class of techniques allows direct patterning of the superconductor through electrodeposition or drop-on-demand (DOD) inkjet printing [22][23][24][25][26]. While ink-jet printing has been used for many years in depositing text or patterns on textiles or paper, it is only recently that there has been a growing interest in using the deposition technique for functional ceramic coatings and structures [27][28][29][30][31]. The biggest advantage of ink-jet printing as a one-step process is its low investment cost, scalability, the more efficient use of materials and the good control of the thickness and pattern of the coating.…”