Weathering performance of the polyurethane nanocomposite coatings containing silane treated TiO2 nanoparticles

▶ This work explains an efficient approach to improve weathering performance of an polyurethane based coating with employing silane coupling agent treated TiO2 nanoparticles. ▶ Weathering performance of PU nanocomposites coatings was investigated utilizing colour coordinates data collection, tensile strength measurements and surface morphology evaluation. ▶ TEM and AFM observations revealed that the APS treated nanoparticles have a better dispersion and smaller agglomeration, compared with their untreated counterparts. ▶ The results revealed that addition of 0.5-1.0 wt.% APS treated TiO2 nanoparticles reduces photocatalytic activity, and improves the weathering performance PU nanocomposite coatings. ▶ Results also revealed that the colour measurement is a useful technique and non destructive method for evaluation of coating's performance against weathering conditions.