International Journal of Molecular Sciences

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Dear Colleagues,

Macro-, meso- and microporous membranes are widely used for separation and catalysis in the fields of food processing, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, petrochemicals, and many more besides. In addition, they are also employed in production and energy storage. They can be tailored to provide different types of architecture, which requires the use of novel designs and specific synthesis methods. The optimal membrane microstructure consists of desirable pore sizes, a sharp pore size distribution, good pore interconnectivity and porosity, large surface areas, and an absence of defects. Furthermore, the design of three-dimensional materials with multiscale pore architecture represents an ongoing challenge. Chemistry provides the knowledge required to design and create new materials and the study of physics provides the necessary knowledge to understand their characteristics and properties for specific applications.

This Special Issue welcomes original research papers and reviews on the design, preparation and application of macro-, meso- and microporous materials. This Special Issue focuses on researching these porous materials at the molecular level, with a specific focus on mechanistic studies.

Dr. María Teresa Colomer
Guest Editor

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Related Special Issue

Published Papers (1 paper)

Research

11 pages, 2387 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Facile Synthesis and Application of Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles with a Vinyl Functional Group for Plastic Recycling

by Jong-tak Lee, Misun Kang and Jae Young Bae

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(4), 2295; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms25042295 - 15 Feb 2024

Viewed by 521

Abstract

Due to growing concerns about environmental pollution from plastic waste, plastic recycling research is gaining momentum. Traditional methods, such as incorporating inorganic particles, increasing cross-linking density with peroxides, and blending with silicone monomers, often improve mechanical properties but reduce flexibility for specific performance requirements. This study focuses on synthesizing silica nanoparticles with vinyl functional groups and evaluating their mechanical performance when used in recycled plastics. Silica precursors, namely sodium silicate and vinyltrimethoxysilane (VTMS), combined with a surfactant, were employed to create pores, increasing silica’s surface area. The early-stage introduction of vinyl functional groups prevented the typical post-synthesis reduction in surface area. Porous silica was produced in varying quantities of VTMS, and the synthesized porous silica nanomaterials were incorporated into recycled polyethylene to induce cross-linking. Despite a decrease in surface area with increasing VTMS content, a significant surface area of 883 m²/g was achieved. In conclusion, porous silica with the right amount of vinyl content exhibited improved mechanical performance, including increased tensile strength, compared to conventional porous silica. This study shows that synthesized porous silica with integrated vinyl functional groups effectively enhances the performance of recycled plastics. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Scale Design, Synthesis, and Application of Macroporous, Mesoporous, and Microporous Materials)

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