Biopolymer assisted synthesis of silica-carbon composite by spray drying.

Spray drying had been used to synthesize silica-carbon black nanocomposite micrometric granules with a uniform distribution of the two components. This was achieved by hindering the preferential diffusion of hydrophobic carbon and hydrophilic silica particles in the water droplets during evaporative assembly by introducing gum arabic as a stabilizing agent and network former. Both positive and negatively charged silica nanoparticles were used to check the stability of the sol and its effect on the morphology of the spray dried granules. X-ray and neutron scattering, complemented with electron microscopy, were used to investigate the correlation and distribution of the nanoparticles within the granules. Porous silica granules, having surface area of 157 m/g, were obtained after removal of carbon black by calcination. An environment-friendly solar absorbing coating had been prepared using as synthesized granules.