Synthesis of mesoporous silica particles with fibrous morphology via self-assembly process in microemulsion system

Abstract

In this research, several precursors were chosen to solve the drawbacks of using toxic and expensive chemicals in the synthesis of fibrous mesoporous silica particle via self-assembly process in microemulsion system. The synthesis of this emerging material normally is realized by using toxic cetylpyridinium bromide (CPB) as common structure directing agent in conjunction with combined cyclohexane and n-pentanol as expensive solvent and co-solvent, respectively. Less toxic cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) can be the replacement for CPB but the use of this surfactant may drastically reduce the surface area of the resulting product. Herein, we report that the use of CTAB with combined toluene and n-butanol as affordable solvents can be used to synthesize fibrous mesoporous silica particle with high surface area. The material was well characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), N2 adsorption/ desorption, X-ray difraction (XRD)and thermal gravimetry (TG). This material might be applied in potential applications such as catalysis, drug delivery and adsorption. Moreover, it can be used as a hard-template for fabricating another novel fibrous materials.