Optimizing surfactant removal from a soft-templated ordered mesoporous carbon precursor: an SAXS study.

small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) was employed to identify critical parameters during thermal treatment for template removal of an ordered mesoporous carbon precursor synthesized via a direct soft-templating route. The structural parameters obtained from the SAXS data as a function of time were the lattice parameter of the 2D hexagonal structure, the diameter of the cylindrical mesostructures and a power-law exponent characterizing the interface roughness. Moreover, detailed information on contrast changes and pore lattice order was obtained from analysis of the integrated SAXS intensity of the Bragg and diffuse scattering separately.

Drying of Hierarchically Organized Porous Silica Monoliths-Comparison of Evaporative and Supercritical Drying.

In this study, we present a detailed comparison between a conventional supercritical drying process and an evaporative drying technique for hierarchically organized porous silica gel monoliths. These gels are based on a model system synthesized by the aqueous sol-gel processing of an ethylene-glycol-modified silane, resulting in a cellular, macroporous, strut-based network comprising anisotropic, periodically arranged mesopores formed by microporous amorphous silica. The effect of the two drying procedures on the pore properties (specific surface area, pore volume, and pore widths) and on the shrinkage of the monolith is evaluated through a comprehensive characterization by using nitrogen physisorption, electron microscopy, and small-angle X-ray scattering.

Polyvinylidene Fluoride Aerogels with Tailorable Crystalline Phase Composition.

In this work, polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) aerogels with a tailorable phase composition were prepared by following the crystallization-induced gelation principle. A series of PVDF wet gels (5 to 12 wt.%) were prepared from either PVDF−DMF solutions or a mixture of DMF and ethanol as non-solvent.