Hydrothermal fabrication of rutile TiO2 submicrospheres on wood surface: An efficient method to prepare UV-protective wood

In this work, wood materials with UV-resistant ability were successfully fabricated by depositing submicrometer-sized rutile TiO2 spheres on wood surface using a facile and one-pot hydrothermal method. The prepared samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transformation infrared (ATR-FTIR) techniques. ATR-FTIR spectra demonstrated that chemical bonds were formed at the interfaces between rutile TiO2 and wood owing to the presence of hydroxyl groups. Accelerated aging was used to measure the UV resistance of the original wood (OW), anatase TiO2/wood (ATW) and rutile TiO2/wood (RTW). Comparison with OW and ATW samples, RTW exhibited more UV-resistant ability due to high UV light absorption capability, superior light scattering property and high recombination of the photogenerated electron and hole of the submicrometer-sized rutile TiO2 spheres on the wood surface.

Anatase and rutile TiO2 modified wood materials have been successfully fabricated by using a facile hydrothermal method. The rutile TiO2/wood showed much better UV resistant capability than the anatase TiO2/wood, which has been ascribed to its strong UV absorption, high refractive index, and high recombination rate of photogenerated charges.Figure optionsDownload as PowerPoint slideHighlights
► TiO2 submicrospheres were deposited on wood surface using a hydrothermal method.
► Rutile TiO2 was firstly in situ deposited on wood surface.
► The RTW has much stronger UV resistance than that of ATW and OW.
► A promising method was provided to fabricate inorganic/wood composites.