Synthesis of titania-coated silica nanoparticles using a nonionic water-in-oil microemulsion

Titania-coated silica nanoparticles were prepared by controlled hydrolysis of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and titanium n-butoxide (TBOT) in Triton X-45/cyclohexane H2O reverse (water-in-oil) microemulsions. The pH of the microemulsion plays a key role in the coating of titania (TiO2) on silica (SiO2) nanoparticles. TiO2 loading up to 10 wt.% on SiO2 nanoparticles was detected by SEM-EDS. Quasielastic light scattering and transmission electron microscopy were used to characterize the size and morphology of synthesized nanoparticles.