Novel EPS/TiO2 Nanocomposite Prepared from Recycled Polystyrene

Abstract

<p align="justify"> <span style="font-family:Verdana;">The synthesis and characterization of a new nanocomposite material that was prepared from recycled expanded poly</span><span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">styrene (EPS) and titanium dioxide (TiO</span>_{<span style="font-family:Verdana;">2</span>}<span style="font-family:Verdana;">) is reported here. The EPS was obtained from chemical reagent box insulation. To obtain the nanocomposite, these materials were dispersed in a solvent, mixed with TiCl</span>_{<span style="font-family:Verdana;">4</span>}<span style="font-family:Verdana;"> and heated. The resulting new material was characterized with SEM, TEM, TGA, BET, Raman and IR techniques. The Raman and IR spectra provided complementary information regarding the structure of the nanocomposite. The Raman spectra were used to identify the crystalline structure of TiO</span>_{<span style="font-family:Verdana;">2</span>}<span style="font-family:Verdana;"> in the nanocomposite. In contrast, the IR spectra were used to identify the or</span></span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">ganic portion of the nanocomposite. The TEM images indicated that the nanocomposites had an average particle size of 6</span><span> </span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">-</span><span> </span><span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">12 nm. In addition, the adsorption and photocatalytic properties of the new material were evaluated. The EPS/TiO</span>_{<span style="font-family:Verdana;">2</span>}<span style="font-family:Verdana;"> nanocomposite was efficient at degrading methylene blue (MB) dye solutions under UV irradiation. Furthermore, ac</span></span><span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">cording to thermal analysis, this material had greater polymer stability due to the incorporation of TiO</span>_{<span style="font-family:Verdana;">2</span>}<span style="font-family:Verdana;">.</span></span> </p

Visible light photoactivity of Polypropylene coated Nano-TiO2 for dyes degradation in water

“…The most popular photocatalyst is TiO 2 semiconductor for its excellent optical and electronic properties, low price, chemical, thermal and biological resistance, no toxicity, recovery and transparency to visible light 6 7 8 9 . For these reasons, TiO 2 is widely used in many fields such as medical treatment and microorganism disinfection 10 11 , dye sensitized solar cells 6 8 12 , self-cleaning materials 7 8 , purification of water, air and also in the solar water splitting 8 .…”

“…The physical features of TiO 2 as porosity, morphology, crystallization, surface area and phase transformation influence the photocatalytic activity and the adsorption of the pollutants 13 . In this contest, also different adsorptive materials including silica, perlite, activated carbon, glass 9 14 and others has been tested. The light source plays a primary role in the photocatalytic process due to the fact that the UV or visible irradiation permit different mechanisms.…”

Poly(methyl metacrylate) Nanocomposites for Two-piece CAD/CAM Solution as an Alternative to Monolithic Removable Prosthesis

“…In figure 5, FTIR spectra of the PMMA denture base and PMMA with 0.4% TiO 2 nanoparticles denture base were compared to observe the vibrational pattern changes of the nanocomposite spectrum. The band observed at 1400 cm -1 is attributed to Ti-O-Ti vibrational modes and the band from 1645 cm -1 is corresponding to the Ti-OH bending modes [7,8]. The FT-IR spectra clearly show that Ti binds to the PMMA matrix by the presence of Ti-O-Ti or Ti-OH bands, resulting into a suitable material for 3D printing technique.…”

Study and Characterization of Polystyrene/Titanium Dioxide Nanocomposites (PS/TiO2 NCs) for Photocatalytic Degradation Application: a Review

“…On the other side, the presence of TiO2 NPs in PS films greatly promotes the photocatalytic degradation to the NCs, much faster than the simple photolysis of a pure PS sample, through its oxidative reaction with the active oxygen radicals [34,35]. addition to that, the adsorption with photocatalytic features of the PS/TiO2 NCs are active for the degradation in methylene blue dye solutions by UV irradiation [36]. moreover, Wang et al showed that HIPS/TiO2 NCs have a satisfactory antibacterial effect against Escherichia coli with Staphylococcus aureus and better rheological behavior than bulk PS [37].…”