Electro-chemical detachment process of through-hole porous anodic alumina membrane

A well-ordered porous anodic alumina (PAA) membrane was achieved by anodic oxidization of the aluminium electrode at constant voltages of 30-50V in a solution of 0.3mol·L-1 H2C2O4. A new electrical detachment process was carried out to detach the PAA membranes from aluminium base in the solution of HClO4 and CH3OH. The mechanism of the electrical detachment process and the factors of the pore diameter and thickness of the barrier layer were researched. A larger size of PAA (2cm×2cm) was obtained with thickness of 30-100μm and full-controlled open-hole pores. Compared with reported chemical process, the present method is more simple and rapid and free of metal ions residues. It is important for research of nanostructure assembling techniques.