Synthesis of mesoporous silica fiber using spinning method

A very simple procedure for the synthesis of fibrous mesoporous silica using a spinning method was developed. It was based on the sol-gel process and solvent evaporation process using cetyltrimethylammonium chloride as a template. Fibrous mesoporous silica was drawn by using a viscous solution which consisted of a surfactant (cetylmethylammonium chloride) and hydrolyzed silica alkoxide (TMOS). Fibrous mesoporous materials have two distinct pores, 0.9 and 1.9 nm, with a specific surface area of about 580 m²/g in 1000 rpm of spinning speed. The intensity of the X-ray diffraction pattern of the mesoporous fibers was increased after both the fiber spinning and calcination process. Increasing the spinning speed from 500 to 2000 rpm in the spinning process increased the specific surface area of the mesoporous fibers from 547 to 605 m²/g, and simultaneously decreased the diameter of the fibers from 80 to 20 μm.