Free-standing and oriented mesoporous silica films grown at the air–water interface

Hierarchically structured functional porous silica and composite produced by evaporation-induced self-assembly

“…Further evaporation, predominantly of water, promotes the continuous self-organization of micelles into silica-surfactant liquid-crystalline mesophases. Incipient liquid-crystalline domains are nucleated-at liquid-vapor interfaces [23] (at concentration c < cmc) and grow inward along compositional trajectories established by the steep, 3D evaporation-induced concentration gradient (Fig. 2).…”

3D design of self-assembled nanoporous colloids

“…A cationic assembly can exchange its counteranion, for example, chloride, with a mineralizable inorganic anion, protonated silicate. Synthesis of mesoporous thin films [7,14,18,[21][22][23]29], spheres [17,30,31], curved shaped solids [16,18], tubes [24,32], rods and fibers [18,33], membranes [34], and monoliths [35] has been reported recently. While chemistry of this process is rather well understood, the mechanism of formation of nanoporous silica shapes is not well elaborated.…”

Silver Nitrate/Oligo(ethylene Oxide) Surfactant/Mesoporous Silica Nanocomposite Films and Monoliths

“…4B). This was also investigated by making samples which contain KNO 3 instead of AgNO 3 . Again, at low KNO 3 /surfactant ratios, there is a homogeneous distribution of the ions, K + and NO − 3 , in the silica mesophase, but at high concentrations of KNO 3 , the crystals of KNO 3 appear at the surface of the film samples in a nice cubic and hexagonal morphology.…”

“…First, the addition of 0.10-0.20 g of nitric acid acidified the solution of 0.00-0.30 g of AgNO 3 , which was dissolved in 2.00 g of distilled water. Then addition of 2.00 g of the surfactant C 12 H 25 (CH 2 CH 2 O) 10 OH, C 12 E 10 into this mixture and heating to 50-70…”