Thermal and Photocatalytic Performance of Unsaturated Polyester Resins Modified with TiO₂ Nanoparticles as Panel...

The transport sector is the fastest growing contributor to climate emissions and experiences the highest growth in energy use. This study explores the use of TiO₂ nanoparticles for obtaining photocatalytic nanocomposites with improved infrared reflectance properties. The nanocomposites were prepared by dispersing 0-20 wt% of TiO₂ nanoparticles in an unsaturated polyester resin. The effect of TiO₂ on the curing kinetics was studied by differential scanning calorimetry, showing a significant delay of the curing reactions. The thermal reflectance of the modified resins was characterized by UV-Vis-NIR spectrophotometry, measuring total solar reflectance (TSR). The TiO₂ greatly increased the TSR of the resin, due to the reflectance properties of the nanoparticles and the change in color of the modified resin. These nanocomposites reflect a significant part of near-infrared radiation, which can contribute to a reduction of the use of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning. Moreover, the photocatalytic effect of the TiO₂ modified nanocomposites was studied by monitoring the degradation of an organic model contaminant in an aqueous medium under UV light, and the reusability of the nanocomposites was studied with 5 cycles. The developed nanocomposites are proposed as a solution for reducing global warming and pollutant emissions.