Monolithic periodic mesoporous silica with well-defined macropores

Monolithic pure silica gels with hierarchical macro-mesoporous structure have been synthesized via a spontaneous sol-gel process from silicon alkoxide using a structure-directing agent and a micelle-swelling agent. A monolithic body with well-defined co-continuous macropores is a result of concurrent phase separation and sol-gel transition induced by the polymerization reaction, whereas the mesopores are templated by the cooperative self-assembly of inorganic species, a structure-directing agent, and a micelle-swelling agent. These bimodal pore systems are formed spontaneously in a closed condition at a constant temperature. The following removal of surfactants by heat-treatment gives silica gels with hierarchical and fully accessible pores in discrete size ranges of micrometers and nanometers. The highly ordered 2D-hexagonal arrays of mesopores have been confirmed by X-ray diffraction measurements and FE-SEM observations. Furthermore, by further additions of the micelle-swelling agent, the mesostructural transition from well-ordered 2D-hexagonal arrays to mesostructured cellular foams (MCF) has been induced accompanied by minor modifications of the micrometer-range structure.