Superhydrophilic Fe Doped TiO Films with Long-Lasting Antifogging Performance.

Based on the superhydrophilicity of titanium dioxide (TiO) after ultraviolet irradiation, it has a high potential in the application of antifogging. However, a durable superhydrophilic state and a broader photoresponse range are necessary. Considering the enhancement of the photoresponse of TiO, doping is an effective method to prolong the superhydrophilic state. In this paper, a Fe doped TiO film with long-lasting superhydrophilicity and antifogging is prepared by sol-gel method. The experiment and density-functional theory (DFT) calculations are performed to investigate the antifogging performance and the underlying microscopic mechanism of Fe doped TiO. Antifogging tests demonstrate that 1.0 mol % Fe doping leads to durable antifogging performance which lasts 60 days. The DFT calculations reveal that the Fe doping can both increase the photolysis ability of TiO under sunlight exposure and enhance the stability of the hydroxyl adsorbate on TiO surface, which are the main reasons for a long-lasting superhydrophilicity of TiO after sunlight exposure.