Structural Preferences of Single‐Walled Silica Nanostructures: Nanospheres and Chemically Stable Nanotubes

Structural preferences of single‐walled and coordinatively saturated spherical and tubular nanostructures of silica have been determined by ab initio calculations. Two families of spherical (SiO₂)_n clusters derived from Platonic solids and Archimedean polyhedra are depicted, with n ranging from 4–120. The analogue of a truncated icosidodecahedron, I_h‐symmetric Si₁₂₀O₂₄₀, is favored in energy, closely followed by the I_h‐symmetric Si₆₀O₁₂₀‐truncated icosahedron. The silica nanotubes derived from spherical clusters are capped by Si₂O₂ rings, whereas the tubular section consists of single oxygen bridges. Periodic studies performed with open‐ended silica nanotubes and the α‐quartz polymorph of silica, along with a comparisons to fullerenes and carbon nanotubes, suggest that tubes with diameters of approximately 1 nm should be chemically stable.     

Silicon nanotube anode for lithium-ion batteries

This work describes a promising strategy for large-scale fabrication of silicon (Si) nanotubes. The process began with preparation of silica nanotubes using rod-like NiN₂H₄ as a template and the resulting silica nanotubes were then converted to Si nanotubes by a thermal reduction process assisted with magnesium powder. The electrochemical properties of Si nanotubes were investigated as anode of lithium-ion batteries. It was demonstrated that the as-developed Si nanotubes showed significantly improved rate capability and long-term cycling performance compared with commercial silicon meshes.     

Enhanced field emission property of a novel Al2O3 nanoparticle-decorated tubular SiC emitter with low turn-on and threshold field

We report a novel Al(2)O(3) nanoparticle-decorated tubular SiC nanostructure, which shows a remarkable enhanced field emission property with low turn-on and threshold field. The formation of Al(2)O(3) nanoparticle-decorated tubular SiC on Si substrates is achieved in one-step via simple heating evaporation process for the first time. The nanostructure consists of tubular SiC and the Al(2)O(3) nanoparticles, which homogeneously decorate on the surface of the tubular SiC with an average diameter of 7.8 nm and narrow diameter distribution. Moreover, compared with the same density and sized bare tubular SiC, the Al(2)O(3) nanoparticle-decorated tubular SiC nanostructure has an obvious reduction in turn-on (from 8.8 to 2.4 V μm(-1)) and threshold field (from 23.5 to 5.37 V μm(-1)). The very low turn-on and threshold field is also comparable to that of carbon nanotubes, which indicates the Al(2)O(3) nanoparticle-decorated tubular SiC is of huge potential application in future field emission display devices.     

利用Taguchi法以高岭土为原料制备高硅NaY分子筛

采用Taguchi试验方法优化出了以高岭土为原料制备高硅NaY分子筛的最佳合成参数,考察了硅溶胶的加入量、反应体系的碱度、加水量以及晶化时间对NaY分子筛硅铝比和结晶度的影响。结果表明,高硅NaY分子筛的最佳合成条件是：反应体系各组分的物质的量比为7.5SiO₂∶1.0Al₂O₃∶2.2Na₂O∶120H₂O,晶化时间为16 h。同时发现,对合成样品性能的影响最为显著的因素是硅溶胶的加入量和碱度。采用X射线衍射、N₂静态容量吸附法和扫描电镜对利用最佳条件所合成样品的硅铝比、比表面积、孔分布以及表观形貌进行了表征。结果显示,以高岭土原料制备的NaY分子筛比参考样品拥有更高的硅铝比和更大的比表面积。     

Interface structure of silicon nanocrystals embedded in an amorphous silica matrix

We performed molecular dynamics simulations of the atomic structure of silicon nanocrystals embedded in a stoichiometric amorphous silica matrix. The atom–atom interactions are described by a combination of well-assessed potentials for bulk silicon and SiO₂, plus a mixing term to allow adjusting the charge transfer at the interface between Si and silica. For the free-standing Si nanocrystals, we find that the spherical structure is favoured with respect to the faceted one, up to at least a diameter of 6 nm. Correspondingly, the surface layer shows a higher diffusivity than the bulk. When embedded in the silica matrix, nanocrystals are under severe mechanical stress which is released by the combined formation of porosity at the interface and of bridging Si–O–Si bonds, whose density increases with the nanocrystal size. Vibrational frequencies specific to the interface bonding are identified and discussed.     

Ti-Si介孔分子筛的转晶与控制

以季铵盐型阳离子Gemini表面活性剂[C16H33(CH3)2N+(CH2)6N+(CH3)2C16H33]•2Br−(GEM16-6-16)为模板剂, 改变n(Ti)/n(Si)比值, 合成了系列Ti-Si介孔分子筛. X射线衍射(XRD)和透射电子显微镜(TEM)等表征结果表明, 在n(Ti)/n(Si)≤0.20时, 分子筛为高度有序六方介孔; 当 n(Ti)/n(Si)为 0.30时, 介孔转晶为立方相; 当n(Ti)/n(Si)为0.50时, 介孔转晶为层状相; n(Ti)/n(Si)为1.0时, 材料失去有序孔道结构. FT-IR分析表明, 在分子筛骨架间形成了Ti—O—Si键, 而且Ti—O—Si键的数目随n(Ti)/n(Si)的增加而增加, 达到一定饱和值后基本保持不变. 乙醇和丁醇对纯硅基介孔分子筛孔结构转晶控制作用呈现六方相→立方相→层状相递变规律, 因而钛酸正丁酯水解生成的丁醇对Ti-Si介孔分子筛转晶具有一定的控制作用.     

Structure-dependent optical properties of single-walled silicon nanotubes

The electron excitations of Single-Walled Silicon Nanotubes (SWSiNTs), with sp(2) and sp(3) hybridization, were studied using the localized-density-matrix (LDM) method with INDO/S parameters. Strong anisotropic characteristics of the dynamic polarizabilities were found for all the nanotubes. The transitional intensity along the tubular axis is much larger than that perpendicular to the axis for all the nanotubes. The optical gaps of sp(3)-hybridized infinitely-long pentagonal SWSiNTs are near 3.0 eV and 4.7 eV owing to σ-σ* transitions along the direction of the tubular axis. The optical gaps of sp(2)-hybridized infinitely-long armchair SWSiNTs along the tube axis direction are about 0.7 eV and 2.4 eV for Si(3,3) SWSiNTs and 0.7 eV and 2.7 eV for Si(4,4) SWSiNTs. The former peak at 0.7 eV originated from π-π* electron transitions and the latter peak at 2.4 eV or 2.7 eV originated from σ-σ* electron transitions. Meanwhile, the intensities of π-π* electron transitions are stronger than those of σ-σ* electron transitions in SWSiNTs. The low sp(2) transition energy derived from the weak overlap of unpaired p(z) orbitals of silicon atoms. Moreover, the electronic excitations of zigzag SWSiNTs are similar to those of armchair structures. This indicates that sp(2)-hybridized silicon nanotubes possess much greater potential for application in optical fields.     

Direct formation of thermally stabilized amorphous mesoporous Fe2O3/SiO2 nanocomposites by hydrolysis of aqueous iron III nitrate in sols of spherical silica particles

Nanocomposite materials containing 10% and 20% iron oxide/silica, Fe2O3/SiO2 (w/w), were prepared by direct hydrolysis of aqueous iron III nitrate solution in sols of freshly prepared spherical silica particles (St?ber particles) present in their mother liquors. This was followed by aging, drying, calcination up to 600 degrees C through two different ramp rates, and then isothermal calcinations at 600 degrees C for 3 h. The calcined and the uncalcined (dried at 120 degrees C) composites were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), N2 adsorption/desorption techniques, and scanning electron microscopy as required. XRD patterns of the calcined composites showed no line broadening at any d-spacing positions of iron oxide phases, thereby reflecting the amorphous nature of Fe2O3 in the composite. The calcined composites showed nitrogen adsorption isotherms characterizing type IV isotherms with high surface area. Moreover, surface area increased with the increasing of the iron oxide ratio and lowering of the calcination ramp rate. Results indicated that iron oxide particles were dispersed on the exterior of silica particles as isolated and/or aggregated nanoparticles. The formation of the title composite was discussed in terms of the hydrolysis and condensation mechanisms of the inorganic FeIII precursor in the silica sols. Thereby, fast nucleation and limited growth of hydrous iron oxide led to the formation of nanoparticles that spread interactively on the hydroxylated surface of spherical silica particles. Therefore, a nanostructured composite of amorphous nanoparticles of iron oxide (as a shell) spreading on the surface of silica particles (as a core) was formed. This morphology limited the aggregation of Fe2O3 nanoparticles, prevented silica particle coalescence at high temperatures, and enhanced thermal stability.     

Fabrication of carbon microcapsules containing silicon nanoparticles-carbon nanotubes nanocomposite by sol-gel method for anode in lithium ion battery

Carbon microcapsules containing silicon nanoparticles (Si NPs)-carbon nanotubes (CNTs) nanocomposite (Si-CNT@C) have been fabricated by a surfactant mediated sol-gel method followed by a carbonization process. Silicon nanoparticles-carbon nanotubes (Si-CNT) nanohybrids were produced by a wet-type beadsmill method. To obtain Si-CNT nanocomposites with spherical morphologies, a silica precursor (tetraethylorthosilicate, TEOS) and polymer (PMMA) mixture was employed as a structure-directing medium. Thus the Si-CNT/Silica-Polymer microspheres were prepared by an acid catalyzed sol-gel method. Then a carbon precursor such as polypyrrole (PPy) was incorporated onto the surfaces of pre-existing Si-CNT/silica-polymer to generate Si-CNT/Silica-Polymer@PPy microspheres. Subsequent thermal treatment of the precursor followed by wet etching of silica produced Si-CNT@C microcapsules. The intermediate silica/polymer must disappear during the carbonization and etching process resulting in the formation of an internal free space. The carbon precursor polymer should transform to carbon shell to encapsulate remaining Si-CNT nanocomposites. Therefore, hollow carbon microcapsules containing Si-CNT nanocomposites could be obtained (Si-CNT@C). The successful fabrication was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). These final materials were employed for anode performance improvement in lithium ion battery. The cyclic performances of these Si-CNT@C microcapsules were measured with a lithium battery half cell tests.     

Structure and stability of oxygen adsorption on Si(n) (n = 5-10) clusters

The structures, binding energies, and electronic properties of one oxygen atom (O) and two oxygen atoms (2O) adsorption on silicon clusters Si(n) with n ranging from 5 to 10 are studied systematically by ab initio calculations. Twelve stable structures are obtained, two of which are in agreement with those reported in previous literature and the others are new structures that have not been proposed before. Further investigations on the fragmentations of Si(n)O and Si(n)O2 (n = 5-10) clusters indicate that the pathways Si(n)O --> Si(n-1) + SiO and Si(n)O2 --> Si(n-2) + Si2O2 are most favorable from thermodynamic viewpoint. Among the studied silicon oxide clusters, Si8O, Si9O, Si5O2 and Si8O2 correspond to large adsorption energies of silicon clusters with respect to O or 2O, while Si8O, with the smallest dissociation energy, has a tendency to separate into Si7 + SiO. Using the recently developed quasi-atomic minimal-basis-orbital method, we have also calculated the unsaturated valences of the neutral Si(n) clusters. Our calculation results show that the Si atoms which have the largest unsaturated valences are more attractive to O atom. Placing O atom right around the Si atoms with the largest unsaturated valences usually leads to stable structures of the silicon oxide clusters.     

New route for stabilizing silicon fullerenes

Motivated by the recent synthesis of silica-coated silicon nanotubes, we here present the structural models of their counterparts, silica-coated silicon fullerenes, which can be considered as arising from a structurally stable building block, Si3O2. By performing density functional theory calculations we show that the silica-coated silicon fullerenes possess high energetic and thermal stabilities and point group symmetries as well as large energy gaps. The present results indicate that coating silica on silicon clusters would be a new way for stabilizing silicon fullerenes, which is expected to find potential allocations in nanotechnology.     

Melting behavior of water in cylindrical pores: carbon nanotubes and silica glasses

We report a study of the effects of confinement in multi-walled carbon nanotubes and mesoporous silica glasses (SBA-15) on the solid structure and melting of both H(2)O and D(2)O ice, using differential scanning calorimetry, dielectric relaxation spectroscopy, and neutron diffraction. Multi-walled nanotubes of 2.4, 3.9 and 10 nm are studied, and the SBA-15 studied has pores of mean diameter 3.9 nm; temperatures ranging from approximately 110 to 290 K were studied. We find that the melting point is depressed relative to the bulk water for all systems studied, with the depression being greater in the case of the silica mesopores. These results are shown to be consistent with molecular simulation studies of freezing in silica and carbon materials. The neutron diffraction data show that the cubic phase of ice is stabilized by the confinement in carbon nanotubes, as well as in silica mesopores, and persists up to temperatures of about 240 K, above which there is a transition to the hexagonal ice structure.     

陶瓷基钛掺杂硅胶块体吸附剂研究

以陶瓷纤维纸为基材, 顺次经水玻璃、酸性硫酸氧钛溶液浸渍共沉淀制得新型蜂窝状陶瓷基钛掺杂硅胶块体吸附剂. FTIR谱在波数954 cm^－1附近的特征吸收峰表明钛掺杂硅胶中存在Si-O-Ti键; XRD谱显示掺杂材料为无定型非晶相材料; SEM显示钛掺杂硅胶粒子较好地分散在陶瓷纤维表面及其空隙中; 用EDS及XPS揭示了材料的组成和钛原子含量, 根据钛掺杂前后XPS中Si2p, O1s, Ti2p 3/2电子结合能变化以及²⁹Si MAS NMR中硅原子化学位移差异, 进一步表明钛原子替代硅原子进入了四面体骨架; BET分析显示掺杂材料以中孔为主. 与硅胶相比, 由于钛掺杂, 其比表面积、孔容增大, 吸附性能、耐热性能增强.     

ZSM-35 分子筛的静态合成和晶化机理

 以环己胺为有机模板剂, 硅溶胶为硅源, 采用静态合成法在 220 ºC 的水热体系中制得了 ZSM-35 分子筛纯相. 当初始凝胶中含有一定量的 K+时, 在晶化过程中, K+与Na+的共同作用可以很好地抑制混晶丝光沸石的生成, 且当 n(K+)/n(K+ + Na+) = 0.3 时, 制得的 ZSM-35 分子筛晶化度最高. 利用 X 射线衍射和紫外拉曼光谱对分子筛形成的最佳条件以及晶化机理进行了研究. 发现合成初期前体中含有五元环和六元环的硅物种构筑单元. 通过水热晶化过程, 与硅酸盐的五元环或六元环有关的 450 cm–1 处紫外拉曼谱峰增强, 在晶化后期, 随着无定形凝胶逐渐被消耗, 在 421, 312 和 215 cm–1 处出现新的 ZSM-35 结构的特征拉曼谱峰, 说明这些环物种相互聚集最终形成了 ZSM-35 分子筛.     

Mechanism of densification in silica glass under pressure as revealed by a bottom-up pairwise effective interaction model

A new short-range pairwise numerical potential for silica is presented. The potential is derived from a single ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulation of molten silica using the force-matching method with the forces being represented numerically by piecewise functions (splines). The AIMD simulation is performed using the Born-Oppenheimer method with the generalized gradient approximation (BLYP) for the XC energy functional. The new effective potential includes a soft-repulsive shoulder to describe the interactions of oxygen ions at short separations. The new potential, despite being short-ranged and derived from single-phase data, exhibits a good transferability to silica crystalline polymorphs and amorphous silica. The importance of the O-O soft-repulsive shoulder interaction on glass densification under cold and shock compressions is assessed from MD simulations of silica glass under room and shock Hugoniot conditions, respectively. Results from these simulations indicate that the appearance of oxygen complexes (primarily pairs) interacting through soft-repulsive shoulder potential occurs at 8-10 GPa, and under cold compression conditions becomes notable at 40 GPa, essentially coinciding with the transition to a Si sixfold coordination state. An analysis of changes in system structure in compressed and shocked states reveals that the O ions interacting through the soft-repulsive shoulder potential in denser states of silica glass may create a mechanical multi-stability under elevated pressures and thus to contribute to the observed anomalous densification.     

(Fe(III)(OH(2))(2))(3)(A-alpha-PW(9)O(34))(2)](9-) on cationic silica nanoparticles,a new type of material and efficient heterogeneous catalyst for aerobic oxidations

Polyoxometalates (POMs) electrostatically bind to silica nanoparticles coated with cationic aluminum oxide "(Si/AlO2)n+" to form a new type of material (the anionic POMs replace Cl- counterions associated with the cationic surface sites). Association of a new approximately D3h POM of formula [(FeIII(OH2)2)3(A-alpha-PW9O34)2]9- (1) with the cationic nanoparticles (to form "K81/(Si/AlO2)") was studied in detail. Elemental analysis, particle sizes from both laser light scattering and TEM before and after association of 1, the size of 1 from X-ray crystallography, and other methods provide mutually consistent data that indicate about 58 K8[(FeIII(OH2)2)3(A-alpha-PW9O34)2]- monoanions associate with the average nanoparticle (diameter of the K81/(Si/AlO2) product = approximately 17 nm). While heterogeneity of the cationic sites and roughness of the (Si/AlO2)n+ surfaces make the associated POMs structurally nonuniform, the equivalent of approximately 1 monolayer of 1 is present in K81/(Si/AlO2). Remarkably, while 1, the precursor (Si/AlO2)n+, and the components of 1, each alone, are inactive as catalysts for O2/air-based oxidation of sulfides or aldehydes in solution, K81/(Si/AlO2) is an active catalyst for both reactions (facile reaction with air at low temperature).     

Preparation of a new C18 stationary phase containing embedded urea groups for use in high-performance liquid chromatography

A new C18 urea stationary phase was prepared by a single-step modification process through the reaction of ProntoSil spherical silica (3 microm, Bischoff) with the trifunctional alkoxysilane (CH3CH2O)3-Si-(CH2)3-NH-C(O)-NH-(CH2)17-CH3, prepared in our laboratory. The phase was characterized by elemental analysis and solid-state 29Si and 13C nuclear mangnetic resonance spectrometry. Chromatographic evaluations of the new phase in 150 x 3.9 mm HPLC columns involving the separation of different test mixtures, indicate good performance for both polar and basic mixtures and also show promising results for further applications.     

Preparation and Reactions of Octasilsesquioxanes

Because of the length scales involved, nanocomposite materials incorporate extensive interracial interactions that can result in non-linear changes in the composite property. Chemists often start from polymerizable inorganic and organic constituents in the molecule to build organic/inorganic hybrids that combine advantageous properties of disparate components.Silsesquioxanes (RSiO1.5)n, derived from e.g. RSiCl3 or RSi(OEt)3 by hydrolysis/condensation in a sol-gel process, are a class of silicate framework where each Si-atom is linked covalently to an organic radical R that chemically modifies the silicates. In addition to incompletely condensed silsesquioxanes is the completely condensed octasilsesquioxane. These octameric silsesquioxanes are in transition between small molecules and macroscopic materials with skeletal frameworks found in crystalline forms of silica and zeolites. SisO12(CH=CH2)8 1 has a cubic silica like core and 8 olefin functionalities as known for a long time yet with very few reactivity reports. The acidic hydrolytic polycondensation of (vinyl)Si(OEt)3 in the literature, leading to only less than 20% of 1,also suggests a large room for improvement. We have found that the H NMR spectra of mixtures containing 1 and either the Schrock's catalyst or the Grubbs' catalyst never exhibit vinylic 1H peaks attributable to the formation of products from self-metathesis. With a Pt/C catalyst, the H-Si bond of HSiMe2Cl adds to the vinylic double bond of 1, forming 2 that reacts with sufficient CH2=CHCH2OH to give 3. Upon treatment of the Grubbs' catalyst, a ring-closing metathesis occurs on the surface of the cubic Si8O12 framework. The results exhibit a strong proximity effect with which 3 transforms itself to 4. Alternatively 5 has been prepared.The Gmbbs' catalyst allows 5 to isomerize from Z- to E-configuration to produce 4 independentiy, thus demonstrating the ring-closing metathesis reactions of densely populated terminal olefins on Si8O12 surface.     

一步可控合成二氧化硅纳米管和空心球

通过简单的溶胶凝胶法在相同体系中可控合成了新颖有序的二氧化硅纳米管和空心球,对制备二氧化硅纳米管的多种反应条件进行了系统研究。发现反应时间、溶液中水和乙醇比例、搅拌和滴加速度对形成管状结构都有着重要影响。同时,纳米管的形成机理研究表明,在醇水混合溶液中柠檬酸三铵晶体为细柱状形貌,其作为重要的结构导向剂为二氧化硅胶晶附着提供模板,从而形成管状结构,二氧化硅空心球也显示了相似的形成过程。     

Direct synthesis of well-ordered and unusually reactive MnSBA-15 mesoporous molecular sieves with high manganese content

The mesoporous MnSBA-15 materials with different n(Si)/n(Mn) ratios of 4, 8, 20, and 50 have been synthesized, for the first time, using manganese nitrate tetrahydrate and Pluronic 123 triblock polymer [(EO)20(PO)70(EO)20] by simply adjusting the molar ratio of water to hydrochloric acid (n(H2O)/n(HCl)) under direct hydrothermal conditions. For the effect of structural and textural properties with incorporation of manganese, the MnSBA-15 has been synthesized with different synthesis temperatures at the fixed molar ratios of n(Si)/n(Mn) = 4 and n(H2O)/n(HCl) = 295 in the synthesis gel. The hydrothermal and thermal stabilities of MnSBA-15 have also been investigated. The calcined MnSBA-15 materials prepared have been characterized by ICP-AES, XRD, N2 adsorption, ESR, FE-SEM, and TEM. The ICP-AES studies show a higher amount of manganese incorporation on the silica pore walls, as MnSBA-15 with a n(Si)/n(Mn) ratio up to 2.2 can be successfully prepared at a fixed n(H2O)/n(HCl) molar ratio of 295 by adjusting the ratios of n(Si)/n(Mn) in the synthesis gel. The structural and textural properties of calcined MnSBA-15 prepared can be found by the results of XRD and N2 adsorption. The investigation of ESR results clearly describe the effect of structure and Mn species coordination on the SBA-15 silica pore walls while the uniform pore diameter and rope-like hexagonal mesoporous structure of MnSBA-15 can be identified by TEM and FE-SEM images. With increasing synthesis temperature, an increase the unit cell parameter, pore size, and pore volume and a decrease the specific surface area and pore wall thickness of MnSBA-15 can be obviously noted by the results of XRD and N2 adsorption. The hexagonal MnSBA-15 materials prepared could be tested as catalysts in epoxidation of trans-stilbene to produce trans-stilbene oxide under various optimal conditions while their catalytic properties could also be compared to the results of MnMCM-41 and ZrMnMCM-41.