The low temperature processing of titanium dioxide films by the addition of trimesic acid

Sol-gel deposited titanium dioxide films are used for a wide range of applications. One of the drawbacks to these films is that they must be heated in excess of 400 degrees C in order to obtain durability. We have found that the processing temperature required to prepare sol-gel derived titanium dioxide films can be significantly reduced by the addition of small amounts of trimesic acid. The addition of this material provides a low energy pathway for the growth of titanium dioxide particles. Titanium dioxide films prepared with trimesic acid show significantly enhanced physical properties with respect to cracking and peeling. Scanning Electron Microscopy and X-Ray Diffraction analyses of films are presented.