Preparation and Characterization of Mesoporous Zirconia Made by Using a Poly (methyl methacrylate) Template

Guorong Duan,Lude Lu,Xin Wang,Xujie Yang,Chunxiang Zhang,Aimei Li

doi:10.1007/s11671-008-9123-7

Abstract

Superfine powders of poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) have been prepared by means of an emulsion polymerization method. These have been used as templates in the synthesis of tetragonal phase mesoporous zirconia by the sol–gel method, using zirconium oxychloride and oxalic acid as raw materials. The products have been characterized by infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction analysis, transmission electron microscopy, N2adsorption-desorption isotherms, and pore size distribution. The results indicate that the average pore size was found to be 3.7 nm.

Highlights

Due to their large surface areas, controllable pore size, and easy functionalization [1], mesoporous materials have opened many new possibilities for applications in catalysis, as catalyst supports, in separation science, and in drug delivery, as well as for protein encapsulation
The PMMA particles were dispersed in the solution of oxalic acid in ethanol using ultrasound to form a white suspension, which indicated that the dispersed PMMA particles were in the micron or submicron size range
The dried gel particles were calcined at 500 °C for 1 h, whereupon the dried gel crystallized into zirconia nanocrystals, while the PMMA particles were concomitantly decomposed into gas which diffused out of the structure, leaving voids and pores in the nanocrystalline zirconia particles

Summary

Introduction

Due to their large surface areas, controllable pore size, and easy functionalization [1], mesoporous materials have opened many new possibilities for applications in catalysis, as catalyst supports, in separation science, and in drug delivery, as well as for protein encapsulation. We have used the inexpensive inorganic material zirconium oxychloride and oxalic acid as raw materials to prepare mesoporous zirconia by a sol–gel method [18] with the aid of PMMA as a template. The space occupied by the PMMA particles shrinks from the micron or submicron size range to the nanosized range as a result of the structural collapse that accompanies the crystallization of zirconia.

Results

Conclusion