RT Journal Article
T1 Moving toward Smart Cities: Evaluation of the Self-Cleaning Properties of Si-Based Consolidants Containing Nanocrystalline TiO2 Activated by Either UV-A or UV-B Radiation
A1 Pozo Antonio, José Santiago
A1 Noya Pintos, Daniel
A1 Sanmartín Sánchez, Patricia
K1 Self-cleaning
K1 TiO2
K1 Consolidant
K1 Stone preservation
K1 Photocatalysis
K1 Smart city
K1 Natural and accelerated procedures
AB This study evaluated the self-cleaning ability and durability of Si-based consolidants (an ethyl silicate consolidant and a consolidant based on nanosized silica) spiked with nanocrystalline TiO2 activated by either UV-A radiation (spectral region between 340 and 400 nm, and main peak at 365 nm) or UV-B radiation (spectral region between 270 and 420 nm, and main peak at 310 nm). Granite samples were coated with consolidant, to which nanocrystalline TiO2 was added at different concentrations (0.5, 1, and 3%, by wt.). Diesel soot was then applied to the coated surfaces, and the samples were exposed to UV-A or UV-B radiation for 1650 h. The surface color changes, relative to the color of untreated granite, were determined every 330 h by color spectrophotometry. Slight color changes indicated a recovery of the reference color due to the degradation of the soot. The final surfaces of both the untreated and treated surfaces were compared by stereomicroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The main findings were that: (1) In general, the consolidant containing nanosized silica induced the most intense photocatalytic activity. In the more compact xerogel coating formed by the nanosized silica, more TiO2 nanoparticles were available to interact with the radiation. (2) For all consolidant mixtures, soot degradation remained constant or decreased over time, except with ethyl silicate with 0.5 wt % TiO2 (no self-cleaning capacity). (3) Soot degradation increased with the concentration of TiO2. (4) The UV-B radiation was the most effective in terms of soot degradation, except for the surface coated with the ethyl silicate and 3% wt. TiO2
PB MDPI
YR 2020
FD 2020
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10347/24037
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10347/24037
LA eng
NO Pozo-Antonio, J.S.; Noya-Pintos, D.; Sanmartín, P. Moving toward Smart Cities: Evaluation of the Self-Cleaning Properties of Si-Based Consolidants Containing Nanocrystalline TiO2 Activated by Either UV-A or UV-B Radiation. Polymers 2020, 12, 2577
NO J.S. Pozo-Antonio was supported by the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, Government of Spain (grant IJCI-2017-32771). P. Sanmartín is grateful for the financial support from the Xunta de Galicia (grant ED431C 2018/32). This research was performed within the framework of the teaching innovation group ODS Cities and Citizenship from University of Vigo (Spain)
DS Minerva
RD 24 abr 2026