A TiO2/polyurethane Composite for Photodegradation of Formaldehyde via Covalently Incorporation of Amino-functionalized TiO2

In this study, a TiO2/polyurethane composite (PU-TiO2) for photodegradation of formaldehyde was prepared based on TiO2 amino-functionalized with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTS). FTIR, XPS, TG and TEM measurements demonstrated the successful amino-functionalization of TiO2 by APTS. Then the NH2-TiO2 were incorporated into polyurethane (PU) through urea linkages, and the thermal stability, mechanical properties as well as degradation efficiency of PU-TiO2 were investigated. PU-TiO2 possessed good thermal stability both in the storage and application. Compared with PU physically blended with TiO2, PU-TiO2 showed improved compatibility between PU and NH2-TiO2, evidenced by the enhanced mechanical properties. Most importantly, PU- TiO2 presented a good photoactivity for the degradation of formaldehyde.