In Situ Modification of the Silica Backbone leading to Highly Porous Monolithic Hybrid Organic–Inorganic Materials via Ambient Pressure Drying

We report the synthesis of monolithic porous hybrid organic-inorganic materials based on tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and a bifunctional precursor synthesized from 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) and 3-glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane (GLYMO) via base catalysis. To compensate for the slower hydrolysis and condensation rate of the organically modified silane in basic media, it was prehydrolysed prior to adding it to the silane solution. This process leads to a lower shrinkage and stable monoliths with densities as low as 200 kg/m(3). Analysis of the samples supports the assumption that the porous monolithic materials derived via ambient pressure drying of the gels consist of a network of homogeneous hybrid primary particles. These particles are larger than their inorganic counterparts in classical silica gels and therefore the capillary forces while drying the gels at ambient pressure are reduced. This leads to less shrinkage and thus lower densities of the materials derived via ambient pressure drying. An inorganic xerogel with the same low density can be achieved by a subsequent oxidation step that decomposes the organic moieties.