Facile fabrication of non-spherical thiol-functionalized organosilica particles and their adsorption of Ag(I)

Abstract

Thiol-functionalized organosilica particles with bowl-like or golf ball-like morphology were successfully obtained through a facile sol–gel procedure. 3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane (MPTMS) and tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) were copolymerized under the catalysis of ammonia. The morphology and the growth process of bowl-like and golf ball-like organosilica particles were observed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results demonstrated that the morphology of the organosilica particles could be finely controlled by adjusting the amount of ammonia, the ratio of two silane precursors, the ratio of oil to water and the solvent system. 29Si nuclear magnetic resonance (29Si NMR) spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy were used to detect the composition of the non-spherical particles. Moreover, the as-obtained thiol-functionalized organosilica particles performed high Ag(I) adsorption property with the maximum adsorption capacity of 465.0 mg/g.