Preparation of uniform rhodamine B-doped SiO2/TiO2 composite microspheres

摘要

Uniform rhodamine B (RB)-doped SiO2/TiO2 Composite microspheres with catalytic and fluorescent properties were prepared by all easy and economical method in this paper. The composite microspheres were built up with well-dispersed silica particles as the cores, RB as both the doped agent and stabilizer, and the TiO2 shells were obtained through the hydrolysis of TiCl4 in water bath. The morphology and structure of the particles were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray powder diffraction (XRD). The characterization results indicate that composite particles are all in spherical shape and have a narrow size distribution. The composite particles calcined above 500 degrees C reveal clear crystalline reflection peaks of the rutile TiO2 which exhibits well catalytic property. The photocatalytic experiment was carried out in order to examine the catalytic property of composite microspheres. The fluorescent property of particles was also investigated. Dye-leakage test indicates that RB molecules entrapped in the composite particles by this method are stable inside the particles. (C) 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.