Preparation of mesoporous silica films using sol-gel process and argon plasma treatment

  • Alagappan Palaniappan
  • , Jian Zhang
  • , Xiaodi Su
  • , Francis E.H. Tay

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

14 Scopus citations

Abstract

This Letter demonstrates the first attempt of using sol-gel technique in combination with argon plasma calcination for the preparation of mesoporous silica films. CTAB is used as an organic template to generate the porous structure upon removal by the argon plasma treatment. Field emission scanning electron microscope, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, small angle X-ray scattering, N 2-sorption experiment and nanoindentation technique are used for characterization. Results show that the obtained films have identical chemical structure and comparable mechanical properties with those prepared using thermal calcination. The plasma parameters have distinct influences on the thickness and mesoporous property of the films.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)70-74
Number of pages5
JournalChemical Physics Letters
Volume395
Issue number1-3
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Sep 2004
Externally publishedYes

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