A new mesoporous micelle-templated silica route for enzyme encapsulation

A new mesoporous micelle-templated silica (MTS) route for enzyme encapsulation is presented. The pore structure is given by a new association oflecithin (double chain surfactant) and dodecylamine as cosurfactant. To enhance and to well protect the enzyme activity, lactose was loaded in the synthesis. The mixed-micelles give after the addition of tetraethyl orthosilicate a well-ordered mesoporous material with a spongelike rigid structure stable after calcination at 550 degrees C. The size of the pores lies between 30 and 40 A, matching well with the size of the lipases. The activity of this heterogeneous catalyst was tested in the hydrolysis of the ethylthiodecanoate. These new biocatalysts were very active, more than hydrophobic sol-gel materials and commercially available sol-gel encapsulated lipase. This new MTS synthesis route allows one to encapsulate in one-step various enzymes, even those that are very fragile.     

Encapsulation of Homogeneous Catalysts in Mesoporous Materials Using Diffusion‐Limited Atomic Layer Deposition

The heterogenization of homogeneous metal complex catalysts has attracted great attention. The encapsulation of metal complexes into nanochannels of mesoporous materials is achieved by coating metal oxides at/near the pore entrance by diffusion‐limited atomic layer deposition (ALD) to produce a hollow plug. The pore size of the hollow plug is precisely controlled on the sub‐nanometer scale by the number of ALD cycles to fit various metal complexes with different molecular sizes. Typically, Co or Ti complexes are successfully encapsulated into the nanochannels of SBA‐15, SBA‐16, and MCM‐41. The encapsulated Co and Ti catalysts show excellent catalytic activity and reusability in the hydrolytic kinetic resolution of epoxides and asymmetric cyanosilylation of carbonyl compounds, respectively. This ALD‐assisted encapsulation method can be extended to the encapsulation of other homogeneous catalysts into different mesoporous materials for various heterogeneous reactions.     

A Transparent Thin Film with Hexagonal Mesostructure Containing Rhodamine 6G

A transparent this film was prepared by depositing the sol-gel mixture for the synthesis of MCM-41 mesoporous molecular sieve doped with rhodamine 6G(R6G) dye on glass substrates. The film of silica-surfactant-R6G materials, which was identified to possess hexagonally ordered mesostructure,was composed of nanocrystallites about 35 nm in diameter and 1-10μm in thickness. Cleanness of the substrates, concentration of the sol-gel mixture and rate of evaporation of the solvent were the key factors affecting transparency and homogeneity of the film. Moreover,optical change and lack in dye aggregation were observed to the R6G-functionalized MCM-41 thin film in contrast with that in ethanol solution.     

有机物单层分散在相关材料制备中的应用

与无机氧化物和盐类在载体表面自发单层分散相类似, 许多有机物也可以在载体表面自发单层分散.有机物在载体表面单层分散行为和分散后的存在状态与有机物分子形状和结构特点及载体表面性质和孔结构有关. 利用有机物在载体表面的单层分散, 可以设计制备具有优异性能的材料. 本文简要综述了近年来这方面研究工作取得的相关进展, 主要介绍了有机物单层分散在碳/氧化物复合物、氧化物和薄壁中孔碳材料的制备和织构调控方面的一些应用实例. 单层分散的有机物热分解后可在载体表面形成均匀的薄碳层, 以无机多孔氧化物为载体可制备出包覆均匀碳薄层的碳/氧化物复合物, 这种碳/氧化物复合物在染料吸附、催化剂载体和光催化方面显现出好的性能. 以溶胶-凝胶法制备氧化物时, 分散的有机物可以隔离溶胶颗粒, 从而制备出高比表面积的氧化物并可对孔容进行调控, 以此方法制备的γ-氧化铝比表面积可达506 m²·g^-1. 在惰性气氛中加热上述碳/氧化物复合物, 碳层可抑制氧化物的相变; 而在氧气中, 碳层燃烧发热会促进相变, 由此可快速制备超细α-氧化铝. 包覆均匀碳薄层的氧化物载体对碳起支撑作用, 在将氧化物溶解去除后, 可便捷制得高比表面积、大孔容、高中孔率的薄壁中孔碳材料, 碳材料的形貌、孔径分布等可通过选用不同织构的氧化物载体进行调控.     

新型复合介孔材料HPMo/SBA-15的合成与表征

合成了一种新型复合介孔材料HPMo/SBA-15, 通过XRD, TEM, UV-Vis和IR等方法表征证明HPMo均匀且稳定地包藏到介孔材料SBA-15的由SiO2网络组成的孔壁中. 催化实验结果表明, 该材料在大分子催化裂化反应中具有很高的活性, 在大分子催化氧化反应中连续循环使用未发现活性组分流失, 显示了其在大分子催化和均相催化反应多相化中具有很好的应用前景.     

Mesoporous Manganese Oxide Catalyzed Aerobic Oxidative Coupling of Anilines To Aromatic Azo Compounds

Herein we introduce an environmentally friendly approach to the synthesis of symmetrical and asymmetrical aromatic azo compounds by using air as the sole oxidant under mild reaction conditions in the presence of cost‐effective and reusable mesoporous manganese oxide materials.     

Materials synthesis using oxide free sol-gel systems

This tutorial review highlights some active areas of research into non-oxide sol-gel chemistry. These aim to capture some of the advantages of methods developed mainly with oxides for a new generation of functional materials based on main group and metal nitrides, and semiconducting chalcogenides. Sol-gel processing has a long track record in producing useful materials for optical, magnetic, electrical, catalytic and structural applications. Controlled morphologies can be produced on all lengths scales, from ordered mesoporous arrays to thin films, fibres and monoliths. Hence there is an opportunity to produce new morphologies in non-oxides and hence new applications of these materials.     

溶胶-凝胶法构筑介孔二氧化硅纳微结构

基于硅酸脂水解/缩合的溶胶-凝胶法是目前制备SiO₂胶体最为常用的化学方法. 在溶胶-凝胶反应过程中, 引入介孔导向剂(通常是表面活性剂)可以得到具有介孔结构的SiO₂胶体. 通过对硅酸脂在多相体系界面水解/缩合过程的调控, 可以构筑具有不同纳微结构的介孔SiO₂材料, 为拓展介孔SiO₂材料的应用领域提供了新机遇, 同时也丰富了对溶胶-凝胶法的理解和认识. 本文综述了利用溶胶-凝胶法构筑介孔SiO₂纳微结构的最新研究进展, 并介绍了其在生物医药、 催化、 吸附分离等领域的应用前景, 最后对这一领域所面临的问题和未来发展方向进行了总结和展望.     

Non-hydrolytic sol-gel routes to heterogeneous catalysts

Oxides and mixed oxides have a tremendous importance in the field of heterogeneous catalysis, serving either as catalysts or as supports for active species. The performance of a catalyst depends directly on its composition, texture, structure and surface properties, which have to be precisely controlled and adapted to each application. In this context, the sol-gel process is a unique tool for the preparation and understanding of catalytic materials, owing to its exceptional versatility. In the last 10 years, the non-hydrolytic sol-gel (NHSG) or non-aqueous sol-gel process based on nonhydrolytic condensations in nonaqueous media has established itself as a simple and powerful method for the design of a wide range of oxide, mixed oxide and hybrid materials with controlled composition, morphology, texture and structure. NHSG proved particularly interesting for the preparation of catalytic materials, notably mesoporous xerogels, single site catalysts and highly crystalline nanoparticles. This critical review addresses the application of NHSG to the preparation of heterogeneous catalysts, emphasizing the specificities of this process, and giving a comprehensive overview of the literature (251 references).     

近红外发光稀土配合物及杂化材料研究进展

稀土因其特殊的物理和化学性质,在信息技术、能源技术、生物技术等高科技领域及国防建设等方面都起着非常重要的作用,中国作为稀土大国,十分重视对稀土材料的研究和开发。稀土离子近红外发光(750～1700 nm)在激光和光纤通讯、医学诊断、免疫分析等热门领域的潜在应用,受到了科研人员的极大关注。稀土离子本身发光极弱,通过分子内传能有机配体可以敏化稀土离子发光,但稀土配合物常受外界干扰,其稳定性较差,若将其与凝胶、介孔材料、离子液体等无机基质复合,得到具有良好光、热稳定性和化学稳定性的有机/无机杂化材料。总结了近些年来近红外发光稀土配合物及近红外发光稀土杂化材料的研究进展,并对其发展前景进行了展望。     

Efficient Photoinduced Energy Transfer in a Newly Developed Hybrid SBA‐15 Photonic Antenna

A new hybrid photostable donor–acceptor mesoporous SBA‐15 silica system was designed and prepared. It consists of an encapsulated donor, the Super Yellow (SY) polymer, which transfers the photoexcitation energy directly to an acceptor dye that is linked outside the framework. The obtained composite material was characterized by X‐ray diffraction, nitrogen‐physisorption porosimetry, diffuse‐reflectance (DR)‐UV/Vis spectroscopy and photoluminescence, space‐ and time‐resolved confocal microscopy. The physico‐chemical analyses showed that the system behaves as an efficient Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair, and high photoluminescence was observed from the acceptor. The presented photonic antenna is the first example of dye sensitization by polymer‐loaded mesoporous silica and represents a step forward in the search for new efficient and stable materials with opto‐electronic applications.     

From molecular chemistry to hybrid nanomaterials. Design and functionalization

This tutorial review reports upon the organisation and functionalization of two families of hybrid organic-inorganic materials. We attempted to show in both cases the best ways permitting the organisation of materials in terms of properties at the nanometric scale. The first family concerns mesoporous hybrid organic-inorganic materials prepared in the presence of a structure-directing agent. We describe the functionalization of the channel pores of ordered mesoporous silica, that of the silica framework, as well as the functionalization of both of them simultaneously. This family is currently one of the best supports for exploring polyfunctional materials, which can provide a route to interactive materials. The second family concerns lamellar hybrid organic-inorganic materials which is a new class of nanostructured materials. These materials were first obtained by self-assembly, as a result of van der Waals interactions of bridged organosilica precursors containing long alkylene chains during the sol-gel process, without any structure directing agent. This methodology has been extended to functional materials. It is also shown that such materials can be obtained from monosilylated precursors.     

溶胶-凝胶法固定生物活性物质的研究进展

综述了近年来溶胶一凝胶(Sol-gel)技术在生物活性物质固定化方面的应用和进展。蛋白质、酶、抗体(抗原)、细胞及微生物均可被包埋于Sol-gel玻璃中。包埋后,这些生物活性物质仍保持其生物活性和光谱性质,有望成为实用的生物催化剂和生物传感器。     

Aggregation Properties of Metallic Tetrasulphophthalocyanines Encapsulated in Sol-Gel Materials

Metallic phthalocyanines exhibit, among many useful properties, the ability to protect sensors against short, intense optical pulses deleterious to efficient sensor operation. It is possible by means of low temperature sol-gel techniques to obtain porous monolithic materials encapsulating metallic ions, and all sorts of complex organic molecules. We report here the study of water-soluble metallic tetrasulphophthalocyanines (MTSPc) encapsulated in silica obtained by the sol-gel technique. These materials are transparent and stable and exhibit interesting optical properties. Absorption in the visible region of the spectrum reveals aggregation of the MTSPc species to form dimers which modify the optical absorption of excited states and the resulting optical properties. We investigate the relative importance of the various physicochemical parameters affecting dimer formation (dye concentration, pH, presence of species such as dimethylformamide, pyridine, etc.) in order to control and inhibit dimer formation. Two species are chosen as examples of the general behavior: CuTSPc, which shows a strong tendency to dimerize in water and in mixtures of solvents, and (OH)AlTSPc, which does not form dimers in aqueous solutions because of its hindering OH axial group. The experiments performed show that addition of dimethylformamide or pyridine does not inhibit aggregation in CuTSPc, simultaneously causing the blue color to disappear from the prepared gels. In the case of (OH)AlTSPc addition of relatively high concentrations of pyridine brings about the formation of non-monomeric species.     

A mesoporous silica nanosphere-based carrier system with chemically removable CdS nanoparticle caps for stimuli-responsive controlled release of neurotransmitters and drug molecules

An MCM-41 type mesoporous silica nanosphere-based (MSN) controlled-release delivery system has been synthesized and characterized using surface-derivatized cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanocrystals as chemically removable caps to encapsulate several pharmaceutical drug molecules and neurotransmitters inside the organically functionalized MSN mesoporous framework. We studied the stimuli-responsive release profiles of vancomycin- and adenosine triphosphate (ATP)-loaded MSN delivery systems by using disulfide bond-reducing molecules, such as dithiothreitol (DTT) and mercaptoethanol (ME), as release triggers. The biocompatibility and delivery efficiency of the MSN system with neuroglial cells (astrocytes) in vitro were demonstrated. In contrast to many current delivery systems, the molecules of interest were encapsulated inside the porous framework of the MSN not by adsorption or sol-gel types of entrapment but by capping the openings of the mesoporous channels with size-defined CdS nanoparticles to physically block the drugs/neurotransmitters of certain sizes from leaching out. We envision that this new MSN system could play a significant role in developing new generations of site-selective, controlled-release delivery nanodevices.     

Bicontinuous ceramics with high surface area from block copolymer templates

Mesoporous polymers with gyroid nanochannels can be fabricated from the self-assembly of degradable block copolymer, polystyrene-b-poly(L-lactide) (PS-PLLA), followed by hydrolysis of PLLA block. Well-defined polymer/ceramic nanohybrid materials with inorganic gyroid nanostructures in a PS matrix can be obtained by using the mesoporous PS as a template for sol-gel reaction. Titanium tetraisopropoxide (TTIP) is used as a precursor to give a model system for the fabrication of metal oxide nanostructures from reactive transition metal alkoxides. By controlling the rates of capillary-driven pore filling and sol-gel reaction, the templated synthesis can be well-developed. Also, by taking advantage of calcination, bicontinuous TiO(2) with controlled crystalline phase (i.e., anatase phase) can be fabricated after removal of the PS template and crystallization of TiO(2) by calcination leading to high photocatalytic efficiency. This new approach provides an easy way to fabricate high-surface-area and high-porosity ceramics with self-supporting structure and controlled crystalline phase for practical applications. As a result, a platform technology to fabricate precisely controlled polymer/ceramic nanohybrids and mesoporous ceramic materials can be established.     

Responsive Mesoporous Photonic Cellulose Films by Supramolecular Cotemplating

Cellulose‐based materials have been and continue to be exceptionally important for humankind. Considering the bioavailability and societal relevance of cellulose, turning this renewable resource into an active material is a vital step towards sustainability. Herein we report a new form of cellulose‐derived material that combines tunable photonic properties with a unique mesoporous structure resulting from a new supramolecular cotemplating method. A composite of cellulose nanocrystals and a urea–formaldehyde resin organizes into a chiral nematic assembly, which yields a chiral nematic mesoporous continuum of desulfated cellulose nanocrystals after alkaline treatment. The mesoporous photonic cellulose (MPC) films undergo rapid and reversible changes in color upon swelling, and can be used for pressure sensing. These new active mesoporous cellulosic materials have potential applications in biosensing, optics, functional membranes, chiral separation, and tissue engineering.     

Silica-Based and Transition Metal-Based Inorganic-Organic Hybrid Materials—A Comparison

Organically substituted metal alkoxides can be prepared by reaction of the parent alkoxides with complexing organic compounds. The chemical and structural consequences of such substitutions are discussed in this article. Examples are given showing how functional organic moieties, such as polymerizable groups, can be incorporated into sol-gel materials via the complexing ligands. Major structural differences between silica-based and metal-based hybrid materials originate from the different charge/coordination number ratios of silicon and most metals. This results in a high tendency for the molecular building blocks to aggregate. In many cases, metal oxide clusters are formed which are capped by the organic ligands. Such surface-modified clusters are themselves very valuable condensed matter units for materials syntheses.     

介孔Fe-Cu复合金属氧化物纳米粉催化剂催化低温CO氧化

以环氧丙烷为凝胶剂,采用简便低廉的无表面活性剂的溶胶-凝胶法制备了一系列不同Cu/Fe摩尔比的高比表面积介孔Fe-Cu复合氧化物纳米粉末。运用微反应器-色谱体系考察了它们在低温CO氧化反应中的催化性能。采用X射线衍射、N2吸附-脱附、热重-差热分析、程序升温还原、傅里叶变换红外光谱和透射电镜对所制样品进行了表征。结果表明,这些介孔Fe-Cu复合氧化物催化剂具有纳米晶结构、窄的孔径分布和高的比表面积,在低温CO氧化反应中表现出高的活性和稳定性。 CuO的添加影响了Fe2O3的结构和催化性能。当CuO含量为15 mol%时,催化剂具有最高的比表面积和催化活性,在低温CO氧化反应中表现出较高的催化稳定性。     

Preparation of high-surface-area zinc oxide with ordered porosity, different pore sizes, and nanocrystalline walls

Transition-metal-oxide materials possessing ordered mesoporosity have recently attracted significant research interest due to their numerous potential applications. Among them, ordered mesoporous zinc oxide (ZnO) is a very tempting material because of the importance of ZnO in heterogeneous catalysis. Here, first results of the preparation of ordered mesoporous ZnO materials by using different templates are reported. Porous materials with high surface area, different pore sizes, and nanocrystalline ZnO walls were obtained. Furthermore, we compare the two fundamental templating techniques, involving liquid crystals or ordered mesoporous carbon materials as templates. Regarding the formation of mesoporous ZnO, it was evident that the hard-matter carbon template is superior.