Synthesis of uniform hollow silica spheres with ordered mesoporous shells in a CO_2 induced nanoemulsion

摘要

Monodisperse hollow silica spheres of uniform size and ordered mesoporous shells have been successfully fabricated in water/ heptane/CTAB nanoemulsions induced by compressed CO_2.rnThe synthesis of mesoporous silica materials of well-defined pore geometry has attracted much attention because of their importance in both fundamental and practical aspects. Hollow mesoporous silica spheres, which have some special properties including low density and large specific surface area, have wide applications in different fields, such as catalysis, controlled drug delivery, adsorption and separation. Up to now, various routes have been developed to synthesize hollow mesoporous silica spheres, such as the acoustic cavitation method, the supercritical fluid route, and soft and solid template routes. However, the synthesis of hollow silica spheres with ordered mesoporous walls is very difficult.