Physical and chemical properties of titanium dioxide printed layers

This study focuses on the preparation of the TiO2 thin films from alkoxide solutions containing polyethylene glycol (PEG) as an anticracking agent by the sol–gel method on soda–lime glass plates. Sol application was carried out by inkjet printing using a modified office inkjet printer equipped with piezoelectric print head. The grey level of the printed image was varied in order to control the sol loading of the resulting printed pattern. The effect of PEG addition on the precursor and prepared layer properties was studied. Also, the influence of sol loading on physical properties and on photocatalytic activity of the printed layers was investigated. The thickness of prepared layer was studied by NanoCalc 2000 and the structure of prepared layers was evaluated by optical microscopy, AFM and SEM. The hydrophilic properties of TiO2 thin films were studied by examining the contact angle of water on these films. Photocatalytic activity was investigated as a rate of 2,6-dichloroindophenol (DCIP) decomposition. In all cases, we prepared transparent thin layers of TiO2 with varying thickness and surface morphology. PEG proved to be an efficient agent suppressing the formation of cracks.