General synthesis of ordered stable nonsiliceous mesoporous solids via "acid-base pairs"

In the present work, we greatly and predictively extend the mesoporous materials family by introducing a new concept "acid-base pairs". This concept takes a different perspective in enabling inorganic / organic self-assembly in mesostructured materials. Using this approach we have successfully obtained a wide range of ordered composites, including metal oxides, mixed metal oxides, metal phosphates and metal borates. The "acid-base pairs" not only self-generate sufficient acids to restrain the polymerization of inorganic species, but also facilitate the formation of homogeneous multi-component inorganic walls that are thermally stable.