Surface modification of natural rubber by TiO2 film

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) layer has been successfully formed on a natural rubber (NR) substrate through liquid phase deposition (LPD) method. Thin SiO2 layer serving as intermediate layer between TiO2 and NR, was produced through vapor-phase chemisorption followed by UV/ozone treatment. The stepwise modification process was monitored by FT-IR spectroscopy, water contact angles and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) measurements. The formed TiO2 layer was characterized by UV–visible spectra, XRD, and EDX spectra, and it demonstrates photocatalytic and photoinduced hydrophilic conversion properties. Its possible application as the anti-aging layer of NR also has been tested and gained some promising results.