Preparation and Characterization of Monolithic Silica Aerogels by Sol-Gel Methods
Project no. 1395 · Status: Kapanmış · 2018
Summary
This project aims to produce silica aerogels in highly porous, hydrophobic and monolithic form. The drying type, presence of drying control agent and surface modification strategies were investigated as sol-gel parameters. It was observed that the aerogels produced in the presence of ionic liquid preserve their monolith structure at the end of each drying method. However, compared to ambient pressure drying, supercritical drying yields superior properties. In the second study, the effects of surface modification on the physicochemical properties of aerogels obtained in ambient conditions were investigated. It was concluded that both the physical and physicochemical properties of the silica aerogels were strongly affected by the surface modification. The monolithic silica aerogels can be produced with properties equivalent to the samples obtained in supercritical drying under ambient conditions by incorporating alternative trifunctional agents such as MTMS, MTES or MEMO into sol-gel processes, as well as conventional silylation agents like TMCS.