Fabrication and characterization of TiO2–SiO2 composite nanoparticles and polyurethane/(TiO2–SiO2) nanocomposite films

TiO2–SiO2 composite nanoparticles were prepared by a sol–gel process. To obtain the assembly of TiO2–SiO2 composite nanoparticles, different molar ratios of Ti/Si were investigated. Polyurethane (PU)/(TiO2–SiO2) hybrid films were synthesized using the “grafting from” technique by incorporation of modified TiO2–SiO2 composite nanoparticles building blocks into PU matrix. Firstly, 3-aminopropyltriethysilane was employed to encapsulate TiO2–SiO2 composite nanoparticles’ surface. Secondly, the PU shell was tethered to the TiO2–SiO2 core surface via surface functionalized reaction. The particle size of TiO2–SiO2 composite sol was performed on dynamic light scattering, and the microstructure was characterized by X-ray diffraction and Fourier transform infrared. Thermogravimetric analysis and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) employed to study the hybrid films. The average particle size of the TiO2–SiO2 composite particles is about 38 nm when the molar ratio of Ti/Si reaches to1:1. The TEM image indicates that TiO2–SiO2 composite nanoparticles are well dispersed in the PU matrix.