Abstract
Small angle neutron scattering (SANS) has been used to study (1) the ability to refill the pores of a silica aerogel ( ρ=0.3 g/cm 3) with water and (2) any effect of the water and the re-wetting process on the aerogel structure on the 1 nm to 100 nm scale. A sample filled with a D 2O:H 2O solution which was chosen to match the scattering properties of silica shows no scattering at length scales <40 nm down to the detection limit (~2 nm) of the experiment. This lack of scattering demonstrates that the mesopores of the silica aerogel were successfully filled with the contrast-matching fluid. SANS spectra for samples filled with air or D 2O are similar, indicating that the aerogel structure as detected by this technique is not affected by the reintroduction of water into the pores. Results suggest that some aerogels may be suited for applications in aqueous environments such as catalysis or chemical sensing.
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