Pore Ordering Research Articles

Anodic nanoporous niobium oxide layers grown in pure molten ortho-phosphoric acid

The anodic oxidation of niobium is investigated in pure molten ortho-phosphoric acid (o-H3PO4). At applied potentials in the 2.5–60 V range and for electrolyte temperatures in the 60–110 °C range, porous niobium oxide layers are formed. Pore ordering and morphology depend on the anodization voltage, time and temperature, i.e. the anodic oxide develops different morphologies depending on low- or high-field anodizing conditions. At 100 °C and low voltages, e.g. ≤ 5 V, vertically oriented, amorphous oxide nanopores with cylindrical shape (“nanochannels”) grow with an average diameter of 5–8 nm. Higher voltages (10–20 V) lead to a less ordered pore morphology, resembling a “fish bone” structure. At 40–60 V, and after a sufficiently long anodization time (≥30 min), an orthorhombic Nb2O5 hierarchical structure forms that shows a bimodal pore size distribution with some 100 nm wide main pores that branch out into ∼ 10 nm wide side nanochannels. A partial crystallization of the anodic oxide is observed at high voltages (≥40 V). We propose that this is due to a high field-induced crystallite nucleation in the barrier oxide at the oxide/metal interface. With time, the crystalline oxide is incorporated in the porous layer. The main pores, partially crystalline and hence more stable in the anodizing electrolyte, result from the gradual dissolution of the amorphous side nanochannels.

Effect of alkaline etching on microstructure and anticorrosion performance of anodic film on Al-Mg-Si alloy

Alkaline etching as an anodization pretreatment process is critical to structure and anticorrosion performance of the anodic film. The effects of modification by alkaline etching on AA6061 surface microstructure and corresponding film growth behaviors have been investigated in this work. The in-situ characteristics of grain boundaries, intermetallic particles and film structure were investigated. It is found that a suitable etching time can effectively remove a number of intermetallic particles and reduce the roughness from the matrix surface. For 60s etching, as the microstructures (e.g. cathodic Al-Fe-Si-Mn phase, grain boundary and anodic Al-Mg-Si phase) with different local potential from the matrix are modified, the growth rate can reach 0.39μm min−1 and the integrity of the anodic film are all increased. Extending etching time up to 120s will significantly disturb the regularity of pore order and reduce film growth rate because of the excessive corrosion at grain boundary.

Metal-Free Modified Boron Nitride for Enhanced CO2 Capture

Porous boron nitride is a new class of solid adsorbent with applications in CO2 capture. In order to further enhance the adsorption capacities of materials, new strategies such as porosity tuning, element doping and surface modification have been taken into account. In this work, metal-free modification of porous boron nitride (BN) has been prepared by a structure directing agent via simple heat treatment under N2 flow. We have demonstrated that textural properties of BN play a pivotal role in CO2 adsorption behavior. Therefore, addition of a triblock copolymer surfactant (P123) has been adopted to improve the pore ordering and textural properties of porous BN and its influence on the morphological and structural properties of pristine BN has been characterized. The obtained BN-P123 exhibits a high surface area of 476 m2/g, a large pore volume of 0.83 cm3/g with an abundance of micropores. More importantly, after modification with P123 copolymer, the capacity of pure CO2 on porous BN has improved by about 34.5% compared to pristine BN (2.69 mmol/g for BN-P123 vs. 2.00 mmol/g for pristine BN under ambient condition). The unique characteristics of boron nitride opens up new routes for designing porous BN, which could be employed for optimizing CO2 adsorption.

Highly porous hybrid metallosilicate materials prepared by non-hydrolytic sol-gel: Hydrothermal stability and catalytic properties in ethanol dehydration

Herein, we present novel phenylene- and xylylene-bridged silica and metallosilicate materials prepared by non-hydrolytic sol-gel. The hybrid silica are highly porous, chemically similar to periodic mesoporous organosilica (PMO), but amorphous without any pore ordering. Analogous hybrid metallosilicates are obtained by directly incorporating Al, Nb, or Sn in the hybrid silica framework. Exhibiting open texture, surface acidity and tunable hydrophobicity, these materials are excellent candidates for catalytic alcohol dehydration reactions. The gas-phase hydrothermal and thermal stability of these materials is examined. While the hybrid silica is expectedly stable, a stark decrease in stability is observed for phenylene bridged silsesquioxanes upon metal introduction. The extent of the hydrolytic Si–C(sp2) bond cleavage is quantitatively followed by 29Si MAS NMR, TG analysis, and GC-FID analysis of effluent coming from samples exposed to water vapor. Two important features affecting the hydrothermal and thermal stability are identified: (i) the homogeneity of metal dispersion within the silica matrix, and (ii) the electronegativity of the incorporated metal. The stability of hybrid metallosilicates is significantly improved by replacing the phenylene bridges with xylylene bridges, due to the presence of more stable Si–C(sp3) bonds. Interestingly, the latter hybrid metallosilicate proves to be an active catalyst for the dehydration of ethanol to ethylene. Unlike the other hybrid materials presented here, it reaches high ethylene yields without undergoing degradation and deactivation.

The effects of pore widening and calcination on anodized aluminum oxide prepared from Al6082

In this study, semi-organized anodized aluminum oxide (AAO) is prepared by two-step anodization in oxalic acid using a low-purity aluminum (Al) alloy (Al6082) as the source material. Obtaining ideally ordered AAO layers from Al alloys is confounded by the presence of impurities and requires specialized post-anodization treatment. Here, a process is proposed for obtaining an AAO layer with a semi-ordered pore arrangement by means of calcination and pore-widening procedures. Calcination temperatures of 400–600 °C and pore–widening times of 15–120 min were explored. It was found that calcination improved the pore order of AAO layers from disordered to semi-ordered (defined as being near ideally ordered—one pore surrounded by six neighboring pores). In addition, it was found that calcination at 600 °C resulted in suitable pore widening of the AAO layer. The morphology of the AAO layers was characterized using scanning electron microscopy, which was applied to determine pore diameter, inter-pore distance, pore density, and AAO layer thickness. We found that calcinated and pore-widened AAO layers with pore diameters of 48.7 nm, inter-pore distances of 80.6 nm, and pore densities of 178 pores/μm2 could be prepared. The AAO preparation method proposed here is an economically attractive process suitable for the preparation of AAO layers due to the utilization of an inexpensive Al source.

Formation of Hierarchical Porous Films with Breath-Figures Self-Assembly Performed on Oil-Lubricated Substrates.

Hierarchical honeycomb patterns were manufactured with breath-figures self-assembly by drop-casting on the silicone oil-lubricated glass substrates. Silicone oil promoted spreading of the polymer solution. The process was carried out with industrial grade polystyrene and polystyrene with molecular mass . Both polymers gave rise to patterns, built of micro and nano-scaled pores. The typical diameter of the nanopores was established as 125 nm. The mechanism of the formation of hierarchical patterns was suggested. Ordering of the pores was quantified with the Voronoi tessellations and calculation of the Voronoi entropy. The Voronoi entropy for the large scale pattern was , evidencing the ordering of pores. Measurement of the apparent contact angles evidenced the Cassie-Baxter wetting regime of the porous films.

Mesoporous carbons as metal-free catalysts for propane dehydrogenation: Effect of the pore structure and surface property

Nanocarbon materials have been used as important metal-free catalysts for various reactions in-cluding alkane dehydrogenation. However, clarifying the active sites and tuning the nanocarbon structure for direct dehydrogenation have always been significantly challenging owing to the lack of fundamental understanding of the structure and surface properties of carbon materials. Herein, mesoporous carbon materials with different pore ordering and surface properties were synthesized through a soft-templating method with different formaldehyde/resorcinol ratios and carbonization temperatures and used for catalytic dehydrogenation of propane to propylene. The highly ordered mesoporous carbons were found to have higher catalytic activities than disordered and ordered mesoporous carbons, mainly because the highly ordered mesopores favor mass transportation and provide more accessible active sites. Furthermore, mesoporous carbons can provide a large amount of surface active sites owing to their high surface areas, which is favorable for propane dehydroge-nation reaction. To control the surface oxygenated functional groups, highly ordered mesoporous carbons were carbonized at different temperatures (600, 700, and 800 °C). The propylene forma-tion rates exhibit an excellent linear relationship with the number of ketonic C=O groups, suggest-ing that C=O groups are the most possible active sites. Mesoporous carbons with different pore ordering and concentrations of surface oxygenated functional groups were synthesized and used as metal-free catalysts for direct dehydrogenation of propane to propylene.

A novel methodology to study nanoporous alumina by small-angle neutron scattering.

Nanoporous anodic aluminium oxide (AAO) membranes are promising host systems for confinement of condensed matter. Characterizing their structure and composition is thus of primary importance for studying the behavior of confined objects. Here a novel methodology to extract quantitative information on the structure and composition of well defined AAO membranes by combining small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) measurements and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) imaging is reported. In particular, (i) information about the pore hexagonal arrangement is extracted from SEM analysis, (ii) the best SANS experimental conditions to perform reliable measurements are determined and (iii) a detailed fitting method is proposed, in which the probed length in the fitting model is a critical parameter related to the longitudinal pore ordering. Finally, to validate this strategy, it is applied to characterize AAOs prepared under different conditions and it is shown that the experimental SANS data can be fully reproduced by a core/shell model, indicating the existence of a contaminated shell. This original approach, based on a detailed and complete description of the SANS data, can be applied to a variety of confining media and will allow the further investigation of condensed matter under confinement.

Tuning Cooperative Assembly with Bottlebrush Block Co-polymers for Porous Metal Oxide Films Using Solvent Mixtures.

Block copolymer templating enables the generation of well-defined pore sizes and geometries in a wide variety of frameworks, typically through evaporation-induced self-assembly (EISA). Here, we systematically modulate the solvent quality with mixtures of tetrahydrofuran-ethanol (THF-EtOH) to manipulate the unimer/micelle ratio in the precursor solution to explore how the associated solution structure influences the final pore morphology. A bottlebrush block copolymer (BBCP) with poly(ethylene oxide) and poly(t-butyl acrylate) side chains was used as the template for pore formation. Irrespective of the solvent composition, a bimodal pore size distribution was obtained with mesopores templated by small aggregates of the BBCP unimers (potentially low aggregation number micelles) and macropores templated by large self-assembled BBCP micelles. The morphology and pore characteristics of the metal oxide films were dependent on the THF-EtOH composition. Interestingly, an intermediate solvent composition where the volume of micelles is approximately half the volume of unimers (in the precursor solution) leads to the best ordering of micelle-templated pores and also the maximum porosity in the films. The micelle/unimer ratios in the precursor solutions do not correspond directly to the bimodal pore distribution in the metal oxide films, which we attribute to kinetically trapped assembly of the BBCP at a low THF content. The increased critical micelle concentration at high THF composition leads to changes in the unimer/micelle ratio during solvent evaporation. These results appear to be universal for a number of metal oxides (cobalt, magnesium, and zinc) with the porosity maximized at a THF/EtOH ratio of 3:1. These results suggest the potential for enhancements in the porosity of block copolymer-templated films by EISA methods through judicious solvent selection.

Complex influence of temperature on oxalic acid anodizing of aluminium

Two-step aluminium anodizing is widely used to prepare oxide films with a highly-ordered porous structure through the whole thickness. It can be realized solely at relatively low values of current density in the kinetic anodizing regime that makes this process extremely time-consuming. Temperature is an important thermodynamic parameter which is able to accelerate chemical reactions and mass-transport and, thus, could be suggested as an effective tool to control the growth rate of anodic alumina. Here we report a systematic study of the porous anodic alumina films formation in 0.3 M oxalic acid electrolyte in a wide temperature range. The influence of electrolyte temperature on the kinetics of aluminium anodizing and on the morphology of the obtained anodic alumina films is addressed quantitatively. Current transients registered at various temperatures are used for the calculation of the apparent activation energy of the anodization process in both mild and hard anodizing regimes. In the case of thick oxide films and high electrolyte temperature, the increase in diffusion current contribution leads to switching the kinetically controlled anodizing to the mixed regime which results in destroying the hexagonal pore ordering. Based on the experimental findings, rational electrolyte temperatures and porous layer thicknesses for the first and second anodizing steps are proposed as a guide for express preparation of alumina films with well-ordered porous structure.

Nanoporous Aluminum Oxide Templates of Arbitrary Thickness on Silicon Carrier Wafer

Porous templates of anodized aluminum oxide (AAO) are of interest in terms of photonics, energy storage, and other various nanoscience applications. There is a great interest to grow AAO templates directly on silicon as a carrier wafer, however most attempts rely on film deposition techniques that are generally suited for depositions on the order of 1 um. Thicker aluminum films are desirable in order to achieve better ordering of the AAO pores through two-step anodization and for greater aspect ratio for applications where surface area is the dominant factor such as solar cell and supercapacitor devices. Thick metal films are commonly applied through electrodeposition, however this technique is not suitable for aluminum owing to its high reduction potential above that of water. Aluminum and silicon are known to alloy up to approximately 1 atomic percent silicon in aluminum. Here, AlSi alloys are used as adhesion layers between aluminum foils and silicon wafers as a solution to the thin film problem. High purity aluminum foils and silicon wafers are pressed together as a diffusion couple. The couple is then annealed under argon atmosphere at temperatures from 550oC to 650oC (from below the AlSi eutectic temperature of 577oC to just below the Al melting temperature of 660oC) for various times. Cross sections of these couples are examined under scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to determine the thickness of the diffusion region and to check for the presence of voids. The chemical composition of the diffusion region is investigated through electron probe micro-analysis. Bonded Al-AlSi-Si composites are anodized in either phosphoric or sulfuric acids using a two-step process, and the final AAO morphology is examined under SEM.

Amine functionalized mesoporous hybrid materials: influence of KCl and xylene on the textural characteristics and CO2 sorption

Amine-functionalized mesoporous silica materials were prepared by sol–gel method in the system tetraethylortosilicate: bis[(3- trimethoxysilyl)propyl]amine (TEOS: BTPA). The hybrid amine functionalized silica materials were synthesized by co-condensation reaction between TEOS and BTPA precursors in acidic media. Soft template approach for pore formation was applied and as a structural directing agent was used surfactant Pluronic P123. For improving of pore ordering and textural characteristics xylene and KCl were used and their influence on the structural and morphological characteristics was investigated by FTIR, 13C CP MAS NMR, 29Si MAS NMR, BET, PSD and XRD techniques. CO2 adsorption properties of the synthesized amine functionalized hybrid materials were investigated. The simultaneous presence of xylene and KCl leads to improvement of the pore ordering, increasing of the textural characteristics values and formation of cylindrical pores. The determined heats of CO2 adsorption evidenced chemisorption process between CO2 and the amine groups of the hybrid materials.

Study of Dielectric properties for porous silicon prepared by Anodization

The nanostructure for porous silicon (PS) films is produced by anodization of p-type silicon chip with current consistency (15 mA/cm2), etching time about 10 min and HF concentration (32%) to the formation nanosized pore order with a dimension of around few hundreds nanometric. The films were featured by the measurement of atomic force microscopy (AFM) in the Baghdad university, X-Ray diffraction (XRD) and FTIR spectroscopy characteristics in the technological university. I am having appraising crystallites size from XRD about nanoscale for porous silicon and AFM proves the nanometric size. Chemical fictionalizations through the electrochemical etching clear on superficies chemical structure of PS. The etching possess disproportionate microstructures that include Si-H clusters in (Si3-SiH), sparse in amorphous silica matrix and Si-H2 scissor mode. From the FTIR testing appeared that the Si suspending bonds of the as- produced PS layer have massive quantities of Hydrogen to form weak Si–H bonds related to Si–H stretch (Si3-SiH) and Si-H stretch (Si2-SiH). The AC electrical properties were measured with LCR meter analyzer the frequency between 50 Hz and 5 MHz. for capacitance, dielectric and loss tangent (tan δD) to balk silicon and porous silicon have been done in the ministry of science and technology.

Fractal Characteristics and Heterogeneity of the Nanopore Structure of Marine Shale in Southern North China

The characteristics of the nanopore structure in shale play a crucial role in methane adsorption and in determining the occurrence and migration of shale gas. In this study, using an integrated approach of X-ray diffraction (XRD), N2 adsorption, and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), we systematically focused on eight drilling samples of marine Taiyuan shale from well ZK1 in southern North China to study the characteristics and heterogeneity of their nanopore structure. The results indicated that different sedimentary environments may control the precipitation of clay and quartz between transitional shale and marine shale, leading to different organic matter (OM)–clay relationships and different correlations between total organic carbon (TOC) and mineral content. The shale with high TOC content tended to have more heterogeneous micropores, leading to a higher fractal dimension and a more complex nanopore structure. With the increase of TOC content and thermal evolution of OM, the heterogeneity of the pore structure became more significant. Quartz from marine shale possessed abundant macropores, resulting in a decrease of the Brunauere–Emmette–Teller (BET (BET) surface area (SA) and an increase of the average pore size (APS), while clay minerals developed a large number of micropores which worked together with OM to influence the nanopore structure of shale, leading to the increase of the SA and the decrease of the APS. The spatial order of interlayer pores increased with the increase of mixed-layer illite–smectite (MLIS) content, which naturally reduced the fractal dimensions. In contrast, kaolinite, chlorite, and illite have a small number of nanopores, which might enhance the complexity and reduce the connectivity of the nanopore system by mean of pore-blocking. Taiyuan shale with higher heterogeneity is highly fractal, and its fractal dimensions are principally related to the micropores. The fractal dimensions correlate positively with the SA and total pore volume, suggesting that marine shale with higher heterogeneity may possess a larger SA and a higher total pore volume.

Aluminium anodizing in selenic acid: electrochemical behaviour, porous structure, and ordering regimes

Porous anodic alumina films are of great practical importance in membrane science and nanotechnology due to their unique structure possessing the arrays of aligned cylindrical channels. The most promising functional properties are observed for anodic alumina with an ordered porous structure. However, the pore ordering occurs only in a narrow range of anodizing conditions, which are commonly chosen by the empirical search. Here, recently proposed kinetic approach is applied to a directed search of self-ordering anodizing conditions in selenic acid electrolyte. We have developed a new self-ordering regime at the anodizing voltage from 60 to 100 V, which covers a novel interpore distance interval from 120 to 160 nm. Anodic alumina films obtained in this voltage range are free of cracks and possess a highly ordered porous structure, where more than 75% of pores have hexagonal coordination. Current efficiency of aluminium anodizing, anodic alumina formation efficiency, mass fraction of selenate impurities, interpore distance, thickness-to-charge density ratio, and volume expansion factor are determined as a function of anodizing voltage.

Facile Strategy for the Synthesis of Gold@Silica Hybrid Nanoparticles with Controlled Porosity and Janus Morphology.

Hybrid materials prepared by encapsulation of plasmonic nanoparticles in porous silica systems are of increasing interest due to their high chemical stability and applications in optics, catalysis and biological sensing. Particularly promising is the possibility of obtaining gold@silica nanoparticles (Au@SiO2 NPs) with Janus morphology, as the induced anisotropy can be further exploited to achieve selectivity and directionality in physical interactions and chemical reactivity. However, current methods to realise such systems rely on the use of complex procedures based on binary solvent mixtures and varying concentrations of precursors and reaction conditions, with reproducibility limited to specific Au@SiO2 NP types. Here, we report a simple one-pot protocol leading to controlled crystallinity, pore order, monodispersity, and position of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) within mesoporous silica by the simple addition of a small amount of sodium silicate. Using a fully water-based strategy and constant content of synthetic precursors, cetyl trimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS), we prepared a series of four silica systems: (A) without added silicate, (B) with added silicate, (C) with AuNPs and without added silicate, and (D) with AuNPs and with added silicate. The obtained samples were characterised by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), and UV-visible spectroscopy, and kinetic studies were carried out by monitoring the growth of the silica samples at different stages of the reaction: 1, 10, 15, 30 and 120 min. The analysis shows that the addition of sodium silicate in system B induces slower MCM-41 nanoparticle (MCM-41 NP) growth, with consequent higher crystallinity and better-defined hexagonal columnar porosity than those in system A. When the synthesis was carried out in the presence of CTAB-capped AuNPs, two different outcomes were obtained: without added silicate, isotropic mesoporous silica with AuNPs located at the centre and radial pore order (C), whereas the addition of silicate produced Janus-type Au@SiO2 NPs (D) in the form of MCM-41 and AuNPs positioned at the silica–water interface. Our method was nicely reproducible with gold nanospheres of different sizes (10, 30, and 68 nm diameter) and gold nanorods (55 × 19 nm), proving to be the simplest and most versatile method to date for the realisation of Janus-type systems based on MCM-41-coated plasmonic nanoparticles.

High specific surface area ordered mesoporous silica COK-12 with tailored pore size

Abstract Ordered mesoporous silica materials such as COK-12, analogous to the well-known SBA-15, are characterized by high surface areas and unique features such as defined pore sizes in the meso-size range and high pore ordering. The aim of this work was to prove the washing step and choice of calcination and aging temperature during the COK-12 synthesis as effective tools in tailoring, markedly improving the specific surface area, pore size, and pore volume. By controlling the aging temperature, the pore size was linearly adjusted between 5.7 and 8.1 nm, while preserving the hexagonal ordering of the pores. The synthesized COK-12 powders possess pore volumes and specific surface areas up to 1.23 cm3 g−1 and 860 m2 g−1, respectively, which is markedly higher than what has previously been reported about COK-12. The presented results and the environmentally friendly character of the synthesis will make COK-12 more interesting for future adaption to the industrial processes, for example in catalysis, adsorption, or drug delivery.

Fabrication and characterization of nanoporous anodic alumina membrane using commercial pure aluminium to remove coliform bacteria from wastewater

Nanoporous anodic alumina (NAA) membranes were produced by anodizing process using commercially pure aluminium (1050 alloy). The optimization of processing parameters, such as applied potential, temperature and time in two different electrolyte solutions, has been performed to produce the ordered alumina nano-membrane. Nanoporous anodic alumina membrane (NAAM) was obtained by removing the aluminium substrate and opening the bottom of the pores. The microstructure of samples was studied and analysed by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). Image processing of FESEM pictures was performed with MATLAB. The results showed that at the optimum conditions of anodizing, the percentage of porosity and ordering of pores in the samples were similar to the productions of the high purity aluminium base. NAA layers that formed in sulphuric acid solution in comparison with oxalic acid had lower pore diameter (20 nm), lower inter-pore distance (45-50 nm) and higher hardness (325HV). The optimized membranes which have been produced with the same thickness were used for separation of Coliform bacteria from the secondary clarified wastewater. The results showed that these membranes can be used as selective filters because of their desirable physical properties.

B-SBA-16 encaged functional tungstosilicic acid type ionic liquids to catalyze the ketal reaction.

There is special significance to composite catalysts using SBA-16 nano-cages as carriers in the acid catalysis field. A method for embedding boron atoms onto SBA-16 to increase acidic sites and enhance the acidity of the nano-cages was described. The tungstosilicic acid type ionic liquid (SWIL) was encaged into B-SBA-16 acidic nano-cages to obtain various composite catalysts. The acidic nano-cages and composite catalysts were characterized by FT-IR, TG/DSC, SAXD, BET, SEM, TEM, XPS and 1H NMR analyses. Research confirmed that boron was embedded onto the SBA-16 nano-cages in varying proportions and the obtained B-SBA-16 acidic nano-cages still maintained a high degree of pore ordering. The SWIL was successfully encapsulated into the acidic nano-cages via the immersion method. The cage-encapsulated tungstosilicic acid type ionic liquid catalysts SWIL/B(n)-SBA-16 were applied to catalyze the ketal reaction of cyclohexanone (CYC) with ethylene glycol (EG). The results showed that the conversion of CYC could reach 92.01% along with the yield of cyclohexanone ethylene glycol ketal (CGK) of 83.87% under ideal conditions. The CYC conversion was still nearly 86.86% and the CGK yield was 69.50% even after 8 times of continuous reuse.

A Toolbox for the Synthesis of Multifunctionalized Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications.

Mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) are considered as promising next-generation nanocarriers for health-related applications. However, their effectiveness mostly relies on their efficient and surface-specific functionalization. In this contribution, we explored different strategies for the rational multistep synthesis of functional MCM-48-type MSNs with selectively created active inner and/or external surfaces. Functional groups were first installed using a combination of (delayed) co-condensation and post-grafting procedures. Both amine [(3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (APTS)] and thiol [(3-mercaptopropyl)trimethoxysilane (MPTS)] silanes were used, in various addition sequences. Following this, the different platforms were further functionalized with polyethylene glycol and/or with a pro-chelate ligand used as a magnetic resonance imaging contrast agent (diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid chelates) and/or loaded with quercetin and/or grafted with an organic dye (rhodamine). The efficiency of the multiple grafting strategies and the effects on the MSN carrier properties are presented. Finally, the colloidal stability of the different systems was evaluated in physiological media, and preliminary tests were performed to verify their drug release capability. The use of MPTS appeared beneficial when compared to APTS in delayed co-condensation procedures to preserve both selective distribution of the functional groups, reactive functionality, and pore ordering. Our results provide in-depth insights into the efficient design of (multi)functional MSNs and especially on the crucial role played by the sequence of step-by-step functionalization methods aiming to produce multipurpose and stable bioplatforms.