Surface Modification of Photocatalytic Cementitious Composites with Polyacrylic Superabsorbent Polymers (SAP)

Abstract

This study focuses on developing new surface modification methods for photocatalytic cementitious composites. The question that was investigated was if superabsorbent polymers can act as an intermediate environment, intensifying the incorporation of TiO2 particles on the surface of the tested material. Four variants of surface modification were designed: water dispersions of TiO2 with non-saturated SAP, with SAP in a hydrogel form, and two reference series. Due to the use of SAP, the efficiency in air purification from NOx under different light conditions compared to the reference series increased significantly, exceeding a 75% increase under a UV-A light and a 600% increase under visible light.

Keywords

• superabsorbent polymers
• SAP
• cement composites
• titanium dioxide
• gaseous pollutants
• photocatalysis