Alternative sol-gel method applied to TiO₂ coating on Al scale fiber

An alternative sol-gel method has been applied to fabricate anatase and rutile TiO₂ coatings uniformly on Al scale fibers with very thin naturally oxidized layer from mixed precursors of Ti tetraisopropoxide, acetyl acetone, deionizer water and ethanol in different molar ratios. The crystal structure of TiO₂ coatings on Al scale fiber was confirmed by both XRD and TEM. The surface morphology of the coatings was observed by SEM and the chemical composition of the grown TiO₂ was analyzed by EDS in TEM. Anatase coating, having a fine crystalline structure, was grown at 450°C while rutile was being done at 670°C. The TEM results indicated that the fabricated TiO₂ coatings consisted of anatase/rutile polycrystalline structures. The optimal fabrication conditions for TiO₂ coatings with about 400 nm in thickness on Al scale fibers were established through the characterization results.