Pyrolysis of a silica gel hybrid with a starburst dendrimer gives porous silica, in which the pore-size is successfully controlled by the size of the organic component used.

This paper describes the synthesis of polymer hybrids between polyoxazoline and silica gel, in which the transition metal salts are incorporated. Organic-inorganic polymer hybrids were prepared by the acid-catalyzed sol-gel reaction of tetraethoxysilane in the presence of poly (2-methyl-2-oxazoline). To this system were added transition metal salts such as cupric chloride, cupric acetate, nickel chloride or palladium chloride. Cupric or nickel salts gave homogeneous and transparent glasses, while palladium salt caused turbid materials. These homogeneous polymer hybrids containing transition metal salts were subjected to pyrolysis at 600°C to eliminate polyoxazoline segments. The resulting porous silica showed high surface area (around 300m21g). In these porous silica gels, the transition metals should be dispersed homogeneously in the matrix, which can be expected as an effective transition metal catalyst-supported inorganic materials (ceramics).