Korean Journal of Materials Research ISSN:1225-0562(Print) 2287-7258(Online) 한국재료학회지

To study the dispersion factors of silica sol prepared from fumed silica powder, we prepared silica sol under an aqueous system using a batch type bead mill. The dispersion properties of silica sol have a close relationship to dispersion factors such as pH, milling time and speed, the size and amount of zirconia beads, the solid content of fumed silica, and the shape and diameter of the milling impellers. Especially, the silica particles in silica sol were found to show dispersion stability on a pH value above 7, due to the electrostatic repulsion between the particles having a high zeta potential value. The shape and diameter of the impellers installed in the bead mill for the dispersion of fumed silica was very important in reducing the particle size of the aggregated silica. The median particle size (D₅₀) of silica sol obtained after milling was also optimized according to the variation of the size and amount of the zirconia beads that were used as the grinding medium, and according to the solid content of fumed silica. The dispersion properties of silica sol were investigated using zeta potential, turbiscan, particle size analyzer, and transmission electron microscopy.