Light-reflective properties of spherical TiO particles coated with (3-aminopropyl)trimethoxysilane, chitosan, SiO, and SnO

We synthesized TiO-based composite pigment materials and investigated their light reflection properties. Micrometer-sized spherical TiO particles were synthesized by the sol-gel method using hydrolysis and condensation reactions of the precursors, and the rutile phase was prepared by calcining at 800 °C. TiO-based composite materials were synthesized by coating the surface of the calcined TiO with (3-aminopropyl)trimethoxysilane (APTMS), chitosan, SiO, and SnO. The morphologies of the composite materials were characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), and the structural properties of the composite materials were identified using powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) analysis. Finally, the light reflection properties were investigated by measuring the percent reflectance in the wavelength range 300–2,500 nm of the composite materials by diffuse-reflectance UV-Vis-NIR spectroscopic analysis. In the wavelength range 300–2,500 nm, the composite materials showed solar reflectance of 86–93%. The composite materials synthesized in this study have potential for use as heat reflective pigment materials.