Synthesis of Mesoporous Silica Immobilized with 3-[(Mercapto or amino)propyl]trialkoxysilane by a Simple One-pot Reaction

Sodium silicate from rice husk ash (RHA) was transformed to functionalized silica with 3‐(mercaptopropyl)‐trimethoxysilane (MPTMS) or 3‐(aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (APTES) via a simple sol‐gel technique in a one‐pot synthesis to give RHAPrSH and RHAPrNH₂. The ²⁹Si MAS NMR of RHAPrSH and RHAPrNH₂ showed the presence of T¹, T², T³, Q², Q³ and Q⁴ silicon centers. The ¹³C MAS NMR showed that RHAPrSH had chemical shifts at δ 16.59, 32.73, consistent with two of the carbon atoms of the MPTMS moiety, while the ¹³C MAS NMR of RHAPrNH₂ had chemical shifts at δ 14.58, 26.13, 47.87, consistent with the three carbon atoms of the APTES moiety. The presence of carbon, silicon, sulfur and nitrogen in RHAPrSH and RHAPrNH₂ was determined by a combination of elemental analysis and EDX study.