Synthesis and lysozyme adsorption of rod-like large-pore periodic mesoporous organosilica

Highly ordered rod-like large-pore periodic mesoporous organosilica (PMO) was successfully synthesized at low acid concentration with the assistance of inorganic salt using triblock copolymer P123 as a template. The roles of inorganic salt and acidity in the production of highly ordered mesostructure and the morphology control of PMOs were investigated. It was found that the inorganic salt can significantly widen the range of the synthesis parameters to produce highly ordered 2D hexagonal pore structure of p6mm symmetry. However, the uniform rod-like PMOs can only be synthesized in a narrow range of acid and salt concentrations, which were sensitive to induction time. The adsorption of lysozyme on PMO was studied at different pH values in comparison with adsorption on pure silica material under controlled morphology and pore structure. It was found that the adsorption capacity of lysozyme on the PMO was lower than that on pure SBA-15 silica material and the adsorption amounts are larger at pH 9.6 than at 7.0 for both materials. The results show that the electrostatic interaction between lysozyme and PMO/SBA-15 surface is more dominant than the hydrophobic forces and the interaction of neighboring lysozyme molecules also plays an important role.     

Step‐Up Synthesis of Periodic Mesoporous Organosilicas with a Tyrosine Framework and Performance in Horseradish Peroxidase Immobilization

New amino‐acid‐bridged periodic mesoporous organosilicas (PMOs) were constructed by hydrolysis and condensation reactions under acid conditions in the presence of a template. The tyrosine bissilylated organic precursor (TBOS) was first prepared through a multistep reaction by using tyrosine (a natural amino acid) as the starting material. PMOs with the tyrosine framework (Tyr‐PMOs) were constructed by simultaneously using TBOS and tetraethoxysilane as complex silicon sources in the condensation process. All the Tyr‐PMOs materials were characterized by XRD, FTIR spectroscopy, N₂ adsorption–desorption, TEM, SEM, and solid‐state ²⁹Si NMR spectroscopy to confirm the structure. The horseradish peroxidase (HRP) enzyme was first immobilized on these new Tyr‐PMOs materials. Optimal conditions for enzyme adsorption included a temperature of 40 °C, a time of 8 h, and a pH value of 7. Furthermore, the novel Tyr‐PMOs materials could store HRP for approximately 40 days and maintained the enzymatic activity, and the Tyr‐PMOs–10 % HRP with the best immobilization effect could be reused at least eight times.     

A versatile synthetic approach to periodic mesoporous organosilicas

A synthetic protocol for the preparation of a variety of high-quality periodic mesoporous organosilicas (PMOs) is presented. These nanostructured organosilicas have been synthesized by the acid-catalyzed hydrolysis and condensation of bis(triethoxysilyl) precursors containing different organic bridging groups. Polyoxyethylene(10) stearyl ether (Brij 76) is employed as the structure director using the surfactant template approach. Methylene, ethylene, ethenylene, and phenylene-bridged PMOs have been synthesized. Surfactant extraction is accomplished by refluxing the mesoscopic composite precipitates in acidified ethanol. The resulting PMOs have been characterized by nitrogen gas sorption, powder X-ray diffraction, ¹³C and ²⁹Si solid-state NMR, and high-resolution thermogravimetric analysis. These organosilicas exhibit large surface areas, narrow pore size distributions, and large total pore volumes. This is the first report of a synthetic protocol with the versatility to make high-quality PMOs containing aliphatic, aromatic, or olefinic carbon functional groups. This versatility is discussed in terms of template and precursor structures under the acidic reaction conditions.Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material is available in the online version of this article at http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00396-003-1004-0     

Adsorption of benzene onto mesoporous silicates modified by titanium

Mesoporous molecular sieve SBA-15 modified by titanium has been utilized for removing organic pollutants, such as benzene, from air. Titanium was impregnated inside SBA-15 by wetness impregnation after synthesis of SBA-15 (impregnation method) or was doped into the SBA-15 framework by the direct addition of Ti precursor into the sol during synthesis (doping method). In the breakthrough curves for gas-phase benzene adsorption, Ti addition into SBA-15 resulted in the enhancement of benzene adsorption capacity, depending on Ti loading amounts. An increase in adsorption temperature remarkably reduced the benzene adsorption capacity, indicating that the interaction between benzene and the materials was weak.     

Improvement of the Kruk-Jaroniec-Sayari method for pore size analysis of ordered silicas with cylindrical mesopores

In this work, the X-ray diffraction structure modeling was employed for analysis of hexagonally ordered large-pore silicas, SBA-15, to determine their pore width independently of adsorption measurements. Nitrogen adsorption isotherms were used to evaluate the relative pressure of capillary condensation in cylindrical mesopores of these materials. This approach allowed us to extend the original Kruk-Jaroniec-Sayari (KJS) relation (Langmuir 1997, 13, 6267) between the pore width and capillary condensation pressure up to 10 nm instead of previously established range from 2 to 6.5 nm for a series of MCM-41 and to improve the KJS pore size analysis of large pore silicas.     

混合稀电解质条件下合成球状SBA-15粒子

在酸性合成法基础上, 不添加有机共溶剂和其它模板剂, 通过加入少量NH4F和Cu(NO3)2得到了分散的球状形貌SBA-15粒子. 对所得样品用小角X射线衍射(XRD)、N2吸脱附曲线、扫描电镜(SEM)进行表征, 讨论了不同电解质对样品形貌和孔结构的影响. 结果发现, 随着酸浓度增加, 得到了分散的规则六边形SBA-15粒子, 而加入一定量的氟化铵则得到了球形纠结状形貌的SBA-15. 实验表明, 氟离子在形成球状粒子的过程中起主要作用, 而Cu2+阻碍了球状粒子的纠结. 随着Cu2+浓度的增加, 部分硅源不能参与自组装生成SBA-15, 其原因可能是Cu2+与模板剂中亲水的聚氧乙烯形成PEO/Cu2+端基, 影响了硅源正常的缩聚.     

Phenylboronic acid functionalized SBA-15 for sugar capture

The synthesis and characterization of organic-inorganic hybrid materials that selectively capture sugars from model biomass hydrolysis mixtures are reported. 3-Aminophenylboronic acid (PBA) groups that can reversibly form cyclic esters with 1,2-diols, and 1,3-diols including sugars are attached to mesoporous SBA-15 via different synthetic protocols. In the first route, a coupling agent is used to link PBA and SBA-15, while in the second route poly(acrylic acid) brushes are first grafted from the surface of SBA-15 by surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization and PBA is then immobilized. The changes in pore structure, porosity, and pore size due to the loading of organic content are measured by powder X-ray diffraction and nitrogen porosimetry. The increase in organic content after each synthesis step is monitored by thermal gravimetric analysis. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and elemental analysis are used to characterize the chemical compositions of the hybrid materials synthesized. D-(+)-Glucose and D-(+)-xylose, being the most commonly present sugars in biomass, are chosen to evaluate the sugar adsorption capacity of the hybrid materials. It is found that the sugar adsorption capacity is determined by the loading of boronic acid groups on the hybrid materials, and the hybrid material synthesized via route two is much better than that through route one for sugar adsorption. Mathematical modeling of the adsorption data indicates that the Langmuir model best describes the sugar adsorption behavior of the hybrid material synthesized through route one, while the Freundlich model fits the data most satisfactorily for the hybrid material prepared via route two. The adsorption kinetics, reusability, and selectivity toward some typical chemicals in cellulose acidic hydrolysis mixtures are also investigated.     

Synthesis monitoring of SBA-15 nanostructured materials

The SBA-15 materials were synthesized by the hydrothermal method using tetraethyl orthosilicate as silica source and P123 as template agent. The synthesis process was accomplished varying the time during the hydrothermal processing. For the synthesis monitoring, a small amount of sample was removed at different times, and analyzed by thermal analysis in order to determine the temperature ranges related to water desorption, template decomposition and silanol condensation for the SBA-15 nanostructured materials, as well as to estimate their quality. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, infrared absorption spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, BET surface area and pore size distribution. The activation energy relative to decomposition of P123 template was determined from TG curves, using multiple heating rates and applying the model free kinetics. From the obtained data, it is possible to monitor the hydrothermal synthesis of SBA-15 in order to control the properties and conditions to prepare ordered materials.     

Synthesis of ordered mesoporous materials using surfactant liquid crystals or micellar solutions

Formation of ordered mesoporous materials using surfactant templating proceeds via mechanisms relying on optimising interactions between the inorganic and organic components of the synthesis. For oxides, the rates of hydrolysis and condensation of the inorganic species relative the rate of assembly of the mesostructure is crucial. Synthetic strategies to control these factors have been reviewed and it appears that mesostructured silica can be prepared in most phases found in binary surfactant–water systems by optimising the volume fraction of the surfactant and the hydrolysed inorganic precursor.     

Manipulation of the phase structure of vinyl-functionalized phenylene bridging periodic mesoporous organosilica

A series of vinyl-functionalized periodic mesoporous organosilicas (PMOs) were prepared by co-condensation of 1,4-bis (triethoxysilyl) benzene (BTEB) and triethoxyvinylsilane (TEVS) using the triblock copolymer Pluronic P123 as a template under acid conditions. It is found that the mesophases of resultant PMOs can be controlled via altering the fraction of organosilanes in the synthesis mixture and catalyst HCl concentration. With increasing fraction of TEVS, mesophase of the PMOs materials changed from p6mm to Ia3d, and then becomes a disordered material. For PMOs with 15 molar percentage of TEVS, the increase of HCl concentration can induce a transformation of mesophases from hexagonal p6mm to cubic Ia3d, whereas, a mixture of p6mm/disordered structure forms at lower acid concentration for the PMOs containing 5 % TEVS. The mechanisms of mesophase transformation were discussed based on the adsorption of TEVS into the micelles, influence of acid concentration on the hydrolysis and condensation rate, and the relative reactivities of the organosilane precursors.     

Selective formation of siloxane-based hybrid cages with methylene groups in the frameworks

A new class of cage-like oligomers were selectively formed by hydrolysis and polycondensation of a methylene-bridged bistrialkoxysilane precursor in the presence of tetramethylammonium hydroxide, which led to the creation of novel silica-based hybrid materials.     

Silica-based mesoporous organic-inorganic hybrid materials

Mesoporous organic-inorganic hybrid materials, a new class of materials characterized by large specific surface areas and pore sizes between 2 and 15 nm, have been obtained through the coupling of inorganic and organic components by template synthesis. The incorporation of functionalities can be achieved in three ways: by subsequent attachment of organic components onto a pure silica matrix (grafting), by simultaneous reaction of condensable inorganic silica species and silylated organic compounds (co-condensation, one-pot synthesis), and by the use of bissilylated organic precursors that lead to periodic mesoporous organosilicas (PMOs). This Review gives an overview of the preparation, properties, and potential applications of these materials in the areas of catalysis, sorption, chromatography, and the construction of systems for controlled release of active compounds, as well as molecular switches, with the main focus being on PMOs.     

Periodic mesoporous organosilicas with co-existence of diurea and sulfanilamide as an effective drug delivery carrier

In this article we report the synthesis of new periodic mesoporous organosilicas (PMOs) with the co-existence of diurea and sulfanilamide-bridged organosilica that are potentially useful for controlled drug release system. The materials possess hexagonal pores with a high degree of uniformity and show long-range order as confirmed by the measurements of small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), N₂ adsorption isotherms, and transmission electron microscopy(TEM). FT-IR and solid state ²⁹Si MAS and ¹³C CP MAS NMR spectroscopic analyses proved that the bridging groups in the framework are not cleaved and covalently attached in the walls of the PMOs. It was found that the organic functionality could be introduced in a maximum of 10 mol% with respect to the total silicon content and be thermally stable up to 230 °C. The synthesized materials were shown to be particularly suitable for adsorption and desorption of hydrophilic/hydrophobic drugs from a phosphate buffer solution at pH 7.4.     

Adsorption of hydrocarbons on mesoporous SBA-15 and PHTS materials

Plugged hexagonal templated silica (PHTS) materials are synthesized using a high TEOS/EO(20)PO(70)EO(20) ratio in the SBA-15 synthesis. This generates internal microporous nanocapsules or plugs in part of the channels, which could be inferred from the two-step desorption branch. These materials exhibit a tunable amount of open and plugged pores and a very high micropore volume (up to 0.24 mL/g) and are more stable than the conventional micellar templated structures known so far. In this study the adsorption properties of PHTS are investigated and compared to those of its plug-free analogue SBA-15. For this purpose nitrogen, n-hexane, n-heptane, c-hexane, 3-methylpentane, 1-hexene, and water were adsorbed on SBA-15 and PHTSs with a different ratio of open and plugged mesopores. The adsorption of n-hexane, c-hexane, n-heptane, and 3-methylpentane on SBA-15 and PHTS-A demonstrated that the presence of the plugs had an effect on the uptake of adsorbate in the low relative pressure region, the position of the capillary condensation step, and the total adsorbed amount of adsorbate. The results showed that n-heptane and 3-methylpentane cannot access part of the micropore system of SBA-15 and PHTS-A. Adsorption of c-hexane and n-hexane on PHTS-A indicated that not only the kinetic diameter but also the shape of the molecule is an important factor for being able to be adsorbed into the micropores or past the plugs. Moreover, these two adsorbates were the most efficient in filling up the available pore volume. From the adsorption of n-hexane on PHTSs with a different ratio of open and plugged pores, it was concluded that the size of the plugs differed, which depends on the synthesis conditions. Water adsorption isotherms proved SBA-15 and PHTS-B to be more hydrophobic than PHTS-A. n-Hexane, 1-hexene, and toluene were adsorbed on SBA-15 and the PHTSs to investigate the influence of the polarity of the adsorbate. The isotherms showed higher uptakes for polar adsorbates on more hydrophobic materials and vice versa.     

Nanoscale organization of thiol and arylsulfonic acid on silica leads to a highly active and selective bifunctional, heterogeneous catalyst

Ordered mesoporous silicas functionalized with alkylsulfonic acid and thiol group pairs have been shown to catalyze the synthesis of bisphenols from the condensation of phenol and various ketones, with activity and selectivity highly dependent on the distance between the acid and thiol. Here, a new route to thiol/sulfonic acid paired catalysts is reported. A bis-silane precursor molecule containing both a disulfide and a sulfonate ester bond is grafted onto the surface of ordered mesoporous silica, SBA-15, followed by simultaneous disulfide reduction and sulfonate ester hydrolysis. The resulting catalyst, containing organized pairs of arylsulfonic acid and thiol groups, is significantly more active than the alkylsulfonic acid/thiol paired catalyst in the synthesis of bisphenol A and Z, and this increase in activity does not lead to a loss of regioselectivity. The paired catalyst has activity similar to that of a randomly bifunctionalized arylsulfonic acid/thiol catalyst in the bisphenol A reaction but exhibits greater activity and selectivity than the randomly bifunctionalized catalyst in the bisphenol Z reaction.     

Synthesis,characterization, and catalytic performance of single-site iron(III) centers on the surface of SBA-15 silica

A new molecular precursor strategy has been used to prepare a series of single-site catalysts that possess isolated iron centers supported on mesoporous SBA-15 silica. The iron centers were introduced via grafting reactions of the tris(tert-butoxy)siloxy iron(III) complex Fe[OSi(O(t)Bu)(3)](3)(THF) with SBA-15 in dry hexane. This complex reacts cleanly with the hydroxyl groups of SBA-15 to eliminate HOSi(O(t)Bu)(3) (as monitored by (1)H NMR spectroscopy) with formation of isolated surface species of the type identical with SiO-Fe-[OSi(O(t)Bu)(3)](2)(THF). In this way, up to 21% of the hydroxyl sites on SBA-15 were derivatized (0.23 Fe nm(-)(2)), and iron loadings in the range of 0.0-1.90% were achieved. The structure of the surface-bound iron species, as determined by spectroscopic methods (electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), UV-vis, and in situ infrared measurements) and by elemental analyses, contains a pseudotetrahedral iron(III) center. The THF ligand of this surface-bound complex was quantitatively displaced by acetonitrile (by (1)H NMR spectroscopy). Calcination of these materials at 300 degrees C for 2 h under oxygen resulted in removal of all organic matter and site-isolated iron surface species that are stable to condensation to iron oxide clusters. Spectroscopic data (UV-vis and EPR) suggest that the iron centers retain a mononuclear, pseudotetrahedral iron(III) structure after calcination. The calcinated, iron-grafted SBA-15 materials exhibit high selectivities as catalysts for oxidations of alkanes, alkenes, and arenes, with hydrogen peroxide as the oxidant.     

Initial stages of SBA-15 synthesis: an overview

This work presents an overview of the data obtained for SBA-15 synthesis under the reaction conditions using synchrotron based small angle X-ray scattering and small angle neutron scattering. Three major stages in the synthesis of SBA-15 materials proceeding according to the cooperative self-assembly mechanism have been identified, and the structures of the intermediates species have been established. Our in situ time-resolved neutron scattering experiments demonstrate that only spherical micelles of the templating agent are present in the synthesis mixture during the first stage of the reaction. According to the neutron scattering and X-ray scattering data, in the second stage of the reaction the formation of hybrid organic-inorganic micelles is accompanied with the transformation from spherical to cylindrical micelles, which takes place before the precipitation of the ordered SBA-15 phase. During the third stage, these micelles aggregate into a two-dimensional hexagonal structure, confirming that the precipitation takes place as the result of self-assembly of the hybrid cylindrical micelles. As the synthesis proceeds, the voids between the cylinders are filled with the silicate species which undergo condensation reactions resulting in cross-linking and covalent bonding, leading to the formation of highly ordered SBA-15 mesostructure. This work demonstrates that valuable structural information can be obtained from X-ray and neutron scattering characterisation of complex systems containing periodic phases with d-spacing values up to 30 nm, and that both techniques are powerful means for in situ monitoring of the formation of nanostructured materials.     

Synthesis, Characterization and Catalytic Activity of Sn-SBA-15 Mesoporous Molecular Sieves

Our recent reports on the synthesis of Sn-incorporated mesoporous SBA-15 materials have been reviewed. The preparation of the samples with different Si/Sn ratios followed two procedures, the first is the post-synthesis modification of SBA-15 by impregnation with Sn chloride or acetate, and the second is the direct method in which Sn chloride was introduced in to Si precursor along with amphiphilic triblock copolymer, while varying the ratio of the synthesis gel. Detailed characterization of the Sn-SBA-15 samples by a variety of techniques shows how the synthesis procedures influence the properties of the samples that reflect on the differences in (a) the structural features, (b) morphology and textural properties, such as the pore characteristics, (c) the possible location of Sn⁴⁺ ions in the meso silica structure and their reducibility, (d) the nature of the Sn species and their the coordination sphere and (e) the acid–base characteristics. We developed a possible model for the localization of Sn species in SBA-15 pore structure for different conditions of preparation. This report includes our investigations on the catalytic properties of these Sn-SBA-15 samples in 3 industrially important reactions, viz., trans-esterification of diethyl malonate, synthesis of nopol by Prins condensation of β-pinene with para-formaldehyde and the epoxidation of norbornene. In each of this reaction, while demonstrating the catalytic role of Sn species, we show that the requirement of the type and the environment of Sn species are different for these reactions.     

模板法制备大孔硅胶微球及其在高效液相色谱蛋白质分离中的应用

以弱阳离子交换聚合物微球(WCX)为模板、N-三甲氧基硅基丙基-N,N,N-三甲基氯化铵(TMSPTMA)为结构导向剂、四乙氧基硅烷(TEOS)为硅胶前驱体,在三乙醇胺弱碱催化作用下,水解缩合形成有机聚合物与二氧化硅复合微球,将此复合微球煅烧后得到大孔二氧化硅微球。探索了不同反应条件对二氧化硅微球的形貌、表面结构和分散性的影响;当TMSPTMA、TEOS与三乙醇胺的体积比为1∶2∶2时可以得到孔径在50~150 nm之间、粒径在2μm左右的硅胶微球。对所制备的大孔硅胶微球表面进行C18(十八烷基二甲基氯硅烷)键合修饰,然后将键合的填料装填到50 mm×4.6 mm的色谱柱中,考察了其对常见的几种标准蛋白质和市售大豆分离蛋白质的分离效果,结果显示这种填料在高效液相色谱蛋白质分离中具有一定的潜力。