IMMOBILIZATION AND STABILIZATION OF TiO 2 NANOPARTICLES IN ALKALINE- SOLIDIFICATED CHITOSAN SPHERES WITHOUT CROSS-LINKING AGENT

Abstract

TiO2 nanoparticles have been shown to have wide applications in multiple fields. The combining of polymer and TiO2 nanoparticles to form films or hydrogel materials has further advantages such as reusable, non-aggregated, recyclable and good dispersible. Although the chitosan particles can be easily obtained by crosslinking method, the cytotoxicity of some commonly used crosslinking agents has made it limited in biological applications. In this article, a facile approach to synthesis of TiO2 nanoparticles- chitosan composite spheres without crosslinking agents was presented. The proposed approach can stabilize and disperse TiO2 nanoparticles in chitosan matrix, and form chitosan spheres by an alkaline solidification process. The diameter of the synthesized spheres is ranging from 1.5 mm to 2.5 mm. With UV-Visible spectroscopy, EDS, XRD and FTIR, TiO2 nanoparticles were shown to be embedded in the synthesized spheres. The fabricated spheres are potential for multi-filed applications, such as bactericide, wastewater pollutant treatment, and the others.