Evaluation of the potential incorporation of titanium dioxide nanoparticles into porous geopolymeric preliminary matrices for CO2 capture
Clara Balduino Vieira; Madeleing Taborda Barraza; Markssuel Teixeira Marvila; Afonso Rangel Garcez de Azevedo
Abstract
The development of carbon dioxide (CO2) capture technologies has been intensifying due to the need to change the scenario of excessive greenhouse gas emissions caused by human activities. Inside the construction industry, binder materials have been modified to achieve this goal. Among the materials being studied and evaluated for their contribution to this issue are microporous aluminosilicate-based materials. This study aims to evaluate the effect of adding titanium dioxide nanoparticles on the potential CO2 adsorption process of geopolymeric matrices. Mixtures were prepared using commercial metakaolin and granulated blast furnace slag as precursor materials, activated by an alkaline activating solution. Hydrogen peroxide, mineral oil, and nano-TiO2 were used as additives. The results showed that the added nanoparticles did not promote any effect on accelerating CO2 adsorption through carbonate formation. However, they contributed to a reduction in compressive strength due to the formation of pores on a different scale from those produced by hydrogen peroxide.
Keywords
References
1 Brasil. Presidência da República. gov.br. Brasília; 2021. [cited 2025 Oct 3]. Available at: https://www.gov.br/.
2 Galina N. Captura de dióxido de carbono (CO2) em processos de carbonatação mineral [thesis]. Guaratinguetá: Universidade Estadual Paulista; 2021.
3 Paiva M, Carvalho C, Simas T. Geopolímeros: Uma revisão das características e aplicações na construção civil. In: Congresso Araguaiense de Ciências Exata, Tecnológica e Social Aplicada. Proceedings of the II Conara; 2020 November 23-28; Santana do Araguaia, Brazil. Santana do Araguaia: II Conara; 2020. p. 1-11.
4 Sindicato Nacional da Indústria do Cimento. Annual Report [online database]. Brasil: SNIC; 2023 [cited 2025 Oct 3]. Available at: http://snic.org.br/.
5 Guerra F. Avaliação experimental do comportamento mecânico de materiais ativados alcalinamente [dissertation]. Coimbra: Universidade de Coimbra; 2014.
6 Neves A. Captura de CO2 em materiais cimentícios através de carbonatação acelerada [thesis]. Rio de Janeiro: Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; 2014.
7 Hu J, Zhang S, Chen E, Li W. A review on corrosion detection and protection of existing reinforced concrete (RC) structures. Construction & Building Materials. 2022;325:126718. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2022.126718.
8 He D, Yang L, Guo J. Effect of carbonation degree on mineral composition, microstructure, and cementitious properties of BOF slag. Journal of Sustainable Metallurgy. 2024;10(4):2267-2281. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40831-024-00881-8.
9 Pouhet R, Cyr M. Carbonation in the pore solution of metakaolin-based geopolymer. Cement and Concrete Research. 2016;88:227-235. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2016.05.008.
10 Silveira A, Freire A, Elyseu F, Moreira R, Peterson M, Doyle A, et al. Synthesis of waste-derived geopolymer– zeolite composite with Enhanced CO2 adsorption capacity. Eng. 2024;5(4):3439-3450. https://doi.org/10.3390/eng5040179.
11 Jin Q, Xiang W, Xu C, Tang G, Liu Z. Compressive strength and CO2 mineralization mechanism of copper slag-GGBS alkali-activated geopolymer composites enhanced by MgO and Biochar. Materials (Basel). 2025;18(19):4434. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma18194434. PMid:41095261.
12 Abdalla J, Thomas B, Hawileh R, Yang J, Jindal B, Ariyachandra E. Influence of nano-TiO2, nano-Fe2O3, nanoclay and nano-CaCO3 on the properties of cement/geopolymer concrete. Cleaner Materials. 2022;4:100061. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clema.2022.100061.
13 Elia H, Ghosh A, Akhnoukh A, Nima Z. Using Nano- and Micro-Titanium Dioxide (TiO2) in Concrete to Reduce Air Pollution. Journal of Nanomedicine & Nanotechnology. 2018;9(3):505. https://doi.org/10.4172/2157-7439.1000505.
14 Silva R. Revisão sobre sequestro de CO2 em materiais mesoporosos estruturados [graduation final project]. João Pessoa: Universidade Federal da Paraíba; 2020.
15 Taborda-Barraza M, Esteves AAB, Vieira CB, Silvestro L, Monteiro SN, Vieira CMF, et al. Contribution of mineral oil on pore stability of alkali-activated composites for CO2 capture. In: Peng Z, Xie KY, Zhang M, Li J, Li B, Monteiro SN, et al. Characterization of Minerals, Metals, and Materials 2025. TMS 2025. Cham: Springer; 2025. p. 305-314. (The Minerals, Metals & Materials Series). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-80680-3_28.
16 Khatib K, Lahmyed L, El Azhari M. Synthesis, characterization, and application of geopolymer/TiO2 nanoparticles composite for efficient removal of Cu(II) and Cd(II) Ions from Aqueous Media. Minerals (Basel). 2022;12(11):1445. https://doi.org/10.3390/min12111445.
17 Clausi M, Cofano V, Medini M, Occhipinti R, Pinto D. Enhancing the sustainability of geopolymer adsorbents for efficient ammonium removal using sludges from water potabilization and wastewater treatment plants. Environmental Research. 2025;283:122161. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2025.122161. PMid:40533038.
18 Novais R, Carvalheiras J, Tobaldi D, Seabra M, Pullar R, Labrincha J. Synthesis of porous biomass fly ash-based geopolymer spheres for efficient removal of methylene blue from wastewaters. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2019;207:350-362. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.09.265.
19 Zhang M, Li J, Bian P, Gao P, Guo B, Zhan B, et al. Investigation of the evolutionary behavior and stabilization mechanism of foams with different properties in cement paste. Construction & Building Materials. 2024;426:135875. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2024.135875.
20 Puthipad N, Ouchi M, Attachaiyawuth A. Effects of fly ash, mixing procedure and type of air-entraining agent on coalescence of entrained air bubbles in mortar of self-compacting concrete at fresh state. Construction & Building Materials. 2018;180:437-444. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2018.04.138.
21 Fajardo, Teixeira MP, Ribeiro LS, Giroto AS, Nogueira AE. Investigation on the structure–activity relationship and the role of peroxo groups on the TiO2 surface in thioanisole oxidation with hydrogen peroxide. Materials Science and Engineering B. 2025;315:118103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mseb.2025.118103.
22 Silva J. Síntese e caracterização de geopolímeros macroporosos com uso de peróxido de hidrogênio [dissertation]. Belo Horizonte: Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; 2019.
23 Liu Y, Xin B, Newton MAA, Li L, Huang D. Advanced photocatalytic self-cleaning membrane for highly efficient oil-water separation using C/TiO2/SiO2 composite. Journal of Water Process Engineering. 2024;59:104969. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jwpe.2024.104969.
24 Medina T, Arredondo S, Corral R, Jacobo A, Zárraga R, Rosas C, et al. Microstructure and Pb2+ adsorption properties of blast furnace slag and fly ash based geopolymers. Minerals (Basel). 2020;10(9):808. https://doi.org/10.3390/min10090808.
25 Campos C. Estudo da carbonatação em compósitos cimentícios produzidos com o emprego de aditivos redutores de permeabilidade por cristalização capilar [dissertation]. Belo Horizonte: Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; 2018.
Submitted date:
10/22/2025
Accepted date:
04/21/2026
Facebook
Google+
Twitter
LinkedIn
Mendeley
StumbleUpon
CiteULike
Reddit
Email