



Some websites maintain titanium dioxide is inferior to zinc oxide, another mineral sunscreen ingredient whose core characteristics are similar to those of titanium dioxide. The reality is that titanium dioxide is a great broad-spectrum SPF ingredient and is widely used in all manner of sun-protection products. What gets confusing for some consumers is trying to decipher research that ranks sunscreen ingredients by a UV spectrum graph. By most standards, broad-spectrum coverage for sunscreen ingredients is defined as one that surpasses 360 nanometers (abbreviated as “nm” - how the sun’s rays are measured). Titanium dioxide exceeds this range of protection, but depending on whose research you read, it either performs as well as or slightly below zinc oxide.
Lithopone has therefore traditionally been used in stoppers and putties, jointing compounds and sealing compounds, primers and undercoats and in road-marking paints.
After drying, the sample is weighed precisely, and through stoichiometric calculations, the amount of titanium dioxide in the original sample can be determined
. The resulting calculation helps determine the gravimetric percentage of titanium dioxide present, providing manufacturers with critical information for quality control.Le lithopone a été découvert dans les années 1870 par DuPont. Il a été produit par la Krebs Pigments and Chemical Company, entre autres1. Il se faisait en différents grades, en fonction de la teneur en sulfure de zinc. Les qualités « bronze » et « or » contenaient 40 à 50 % de sulfure de zinc, ce qui les rendaient particulièrement couvrantes2. Bien que ce pigment ait atteint son pic de popularité autour de 1920, il s'en produisait encore annuellement plus de 220 000 tonnes en 1990. Il est principalement utilisé dans les peintures, les pâtes et les plastiques3.
3. Photocatalysis The photocatalytic properties of anatase make it valuable for environmental applications such as air and water purification. Manufacturers are exploring its potential in self-cleaning surfaces and photocatalytic reactors, which can degrade pollutants under UV light.
Importantly, TiO2 also has a very high refractive index (its ability to scatter light), even higher than diamond. This makes it an incredibly bright substance and an ideal material for aesthetic design use.