Synthesis, characterization and hydrophilic properties of ZnFe2O4-TiO2 composite film

ZnFe2O4-TiO2 composite films have been successfully prepared via a sal gel method and deposited on glass slides through dip coating process. The hydrophilicity of ZnFe2O4-TiO2 composite films was investigated by the contact angles measurements under different conditions, including heat treatment temperature, molar ratios of ZnFe2O4-TiO2 and coating layers. The results revealed that the 7 mol% ZnFe2O4-TiO2 composite film exhibits an excellent superhydrophilic performance with a contact angle 0 degrees. Compared with normal glass, the self-cleaning glasses also display antifogging property. The transmittance of ZnFe2O4-TiO2 composite films was characterized by UV-vis spectra in details. Coating layers and different molar percents of ZnFe2O4 all have impact on the light transmittance. Moreover, the structure and morphology of the ZnFe2O4-TiO2 sample were investigated by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry (EDS) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.