Completion of degree project on the production of titanium dioxide nanoparticles

Public defense of the thesis project: “Production of titanium dioxide nanoparticles by high energy grinding for use in agriculture"

Undergraduate students of Chemical Engineering at the Industrial University of Santander, Angélica María Niño Gómez and Nathalia Isabel Guerrero Pacheco, under the supervision of Professor Mónica Andrea Botero Londoño and co-supervision of chemical engineer Karen Viviana Amorocho Cubides and chemistry professional Laura Yiceth Sanabria Medina, successfully defended their undergraduate thesis project, on April 29, 2024. This project was developed within the framework of the "Nanofertilizers in soil and nitrous oxide emissions" project, funded by FONTAGRO and executed by the Industrial University of Santander (Colombia), in collaboration with the Technical University of Manabí (Ecuador).

The objective of this undergraduate project was to obtain TiO2 nanoparticles using the high-energy ball milling method and evaluate their effect in agriculture. To achieve this, TiO2 nanoparticles were synthesized by varying milling parameters such as filling factor, speed, and milling time. Subsequently, they were characterized using techniques such as DLS, AFM, SEM, XRD, and XPS. Finally, the effect of adding smaller nanoparticles along with a balanced fertilizer was evaluated on Ryegrass crops in a greenhouse setting.

The results indicated that the variation of milling parameters influences the quantity and size of the nanoparticles, reaching an average size of 95.2 nm, representing a reduction of 66.3%. Characterization techniques revealed that the smaller nanoparticles exhibit a spherical morphology and predominantly anatase phase crystallinity with no chemical changes in the milling material. Their application with a balanced fertilizer in crops resulted in increased biomass production and higher nitrogen recovery efficiency.