A low temperature preparation and photocatalytical activities of PDVB@TiO2 hybrid microspheres

The core/shell anatase TiO2 encapsulated poly(divinylbenzene) (PDVB@TiO2) hybrid microspheres were prepared by the two steps: (1) the copolymer particles (PDVB) were prepared by the radical precipitation copolymerization of divinylbenzene (DVB) and c-[(methacryloxy)propyl]trimethoxysilane (KH-570); (2) tetrabutyl titanate (TBOT) was co-hydrolyzed with the trimethoxysilyl groups on the surfaces of the PDVB cores and then the amorphous TiO2 shell obtained was phase transformed to anatase TiO2 by acid peptization. The products were characterized by FT-IR, UV–vis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA). Their photocatalytical activities were measured by the photo-degradation of methylene blue (MB). The polymer supported TiO2 photocatalysts prepared at low temperature, had better repetition because of the coupled action of KH-570 between the PDVB core and TiO2 shell. Furthermore, it could be easily separated from the solution by simple sedimentation.