Micro-TiO2 Particles Synthesis by a Novel Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Jet

A novel atmospheric pressure plasma jet (APPJ) was used to deposit titanium dioxide (TiO2) particles in this investigation. This was achieved by controlling the operating parameters in a low temperature, capacitive radio frequency plasma jet in which titanium tetraisopropoxide (TTIP) precursor was vaporized with an argon/oxygen carrier gas, and then exposed to ambient air. The influence of plasma power and oxygen gas flow rate which result in control of surface morphology, microstructure, and chemical composition has been investigated. The chemical composition of the APP synthesized particles of TiO2 was studied with Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis; whereas the particle morphology was investigated with scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The APPJ synthesized particles of TiO2 were highly uniform and adjustable in size. The titanium-based particle sizes ranged from 2 to 10 um, and they depended on the precursor ratio of TTIP/O-2 APP deposited particles of titanium dioxide (TiO2) which has a potential application as hole-transport materials in dye-sensitized-solar-cells.