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Synthesis of large-pore SBA-15 silica using poly(ethylene oxide)-poly(methyl acrylate) diblock copolymers

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Abstract

Poly(ethylene oxide)-poly(methyl acrylate) diblock copolymers with narrow molecular weight distributions were synthesized using atom transfer radical polymerization. The copolymers were used as micellar templates for the synthesis of mesoporous silicas. The products were characterized using small-angle X-ray scattering, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and nitrogen adsorption. The obtained silicas exhibited two-dimensional hexagonal structures of cylindrical mesopores, and thus can be classified as SBA-15 silicas. In some cases, the size of ordered domains was very small. The (100) interplanar spacings were 13–17 nm, depending on the size of the diblock copolymer used and on the synthesis conditions. Nitrogen adsorption showed that the silicas exhibited specific surface areas of 350–800 m2 g−1, pore volumes ∼1 cm3 g−1, and narrow pore size distributions. The BJH (nominal) pore diameters were up to ∼20 nm, but actual diameters of cylindrical pores are expected to be somewhat smaller. In many cases, the mesopores exhibited constrictions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, College of Staten Island and Graduate Center, City University of New York, Staten Island, NY, 10314, USA

    Liang Cao, Liang Huang & Michal Kruk

  2. Department of Chemistry, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA

    Hongchen Dong & Krzysztof Matyjaszewski

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  1. Liang Cao
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  2. Hongchen Dong
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  3. Liang Huang
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  4. Krzysztof Matyjaszewski
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  5. Michal Kruk
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Correspondence to Michal Kruk.

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Cao, L., Dong, H., Huang, L. et al. Synthesis of large-pore SBA-15 silica using poly(ethylene oxide)-poly(methyl acrylate) diblock copolymers. Adsorption 15, 156–166 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10450-009-9165-x

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