Preparation and characteristics of high performance paper containing titanium dioxide photocatalyst supported on inorganic fiber matrix.

A novel paper-based material containing titanium dioxide (TiO(2)) photocatalyst was successfully prepared by a papermaking technique with the internal addition of inorganic fibers on which TiO(2) particles were supported. Photodegradation performance of acetaldehyde gas, an indoor pollutant, and the durability of the TiO(2)-containing papers were investigated under UV irradiation. Ceramic fiber suspension and polydiallyldimethylammonium chloride as a cationic flocculant were mixed, followed by the addition of TiO(2) suspension and anionic polyacrylamide. Subsequently, the inorganic mixture was poured into a pulp suspension, and TiO(2) handsheets then prepared by a papermaking method. The tensile strength of TiO(2)-containing paper without a ceramic carrier decreased by more than 30% after 240-h UV irradiation (2 mW/cm(2)), although the strength of the TiO(2) sheet with ceramic fibers remained reasonably stable. The efficiency of acetaldehyde decomposition by the TiO(2) paper containing an inorganic carrier was nearly equal to that of the carrier-free TiO(2) paper. Scanning electron microscopic observation suggested that most TiO(2) particles were predominantly supported on the inorganic fiber matrix, and were mostly out of contact with organic pulp fibers. The TiO(2) paper with an inorganic carrier demonstrated both excellent photocatalytic performance and durability, which before had been mutually incompatible for organic materials containing TiO(2) photocatalyst. The two-stage mixing procedure for TiO(2) sheet-making is promising for the simple manufacture of high performance paper with photocatalytic ability.