Fabric impregnated with TiO2 gel with self-cleaning property

Cotton fabric decorated with TiO2 synthesized by sol-gel approach was investigated as a self-cleaning material depending on the TiO2 loading (1.5 wt% in the case of single layered fabric and 3 wt% in the case of double layered). The materials were investigated by SEM, EDX, XRD, FTIR, and photoactivity. The self-cleaning property was established by determining the amount of the coated dust, the elemental composition, the carbon content, the opacity, and the water contact angle. The self-cleaning property of the impregnated fabric was accentuated by TiO2 loading. The dust deposited on the single layer fabric stored inside was 3.8 wt% lower than on the nonimpregnated fabric and that deposited on double layer fabric, respectively, was reduced by 9.1 wt%. The decrease in the deposited dust was more accentuated for the samples stored outside (4.2 wt% for the single layer fabric and 16 wt% for the double layer fabric, as compared with the nonimpregnated textile).