NANOPOROUS MONOLITHS HAVING A HIERARCHICAL PORE STRUCTURE

摘要

The shaping process during the preparation of porous materials, such as previously known, commercial porous glasses, is limited to the creation of balls, rods, plates, or granulates. The inventive nanoporous monoliths that have a hierarchical pore structure make it possible to use a new way of preparing porous materials, allowing the creation of random porous geometries. Like in nature, the hierarchically structured system is composed of large nanopores which branch into smaller micropores. The novel production method includes separating phases in a sol-gel process. The inventive method makes it possible to produce nanoporous monoliths with flexible geometries, such as membranes, tubes, and caps.