Elastic methyltrimethoxysilane based silica aerogels reinforced with polyvinylmethyldimethoxysilane

Native silica aerogels are fragile and brittle, which prevents their wider utility. For designing more durable and stronger silica aerogels, polyvinylmethyldimethoxysilane (PVMDMS) polymers as effective and multifunctional reinforcing agents were used to strengthen methyltrimethoxysilane based silica aerogels (MSAs). The PVMDMS polymer, which was composed of long-chain aliphatic hydrocarbons and organic side-chain methyl and alkoxysilane groups, was integrated into silica networks via a simple sol–gel process. Compared with MSAs, PVMDMS reinforced MSAs (PRMSAs) display many fascinating characteristics. PRMSAs exhibit improved hydrophobic properties (water contact angle of 136.9°) due to abundant methyl groups in the silica networks. Benefiting from the fine integration of PVMDMS polymers into MSAs, PRMSAs show a perfectly elastic recovery property, the compressive strength of which ranges from 0.19 to 1.98 MPa. More importantly, PVMDMS polymers have successfully suppressed the growth of secondary particles. Homogeneous silica networks formed by nanoscale particles give PRMSAs a high surface area of 1039 m² g⁻¹. Moreover, optimized PRMSAs also exhibit a low thermal conductivity of 0.0228 W m⁻¹ K⁻¹ under ambient conditions, and their thermal stability reaches up to 222.3 °C in air. All the results obtained from this paper will help us to design silica aerogels.

For designing more durable and stronger silica aerogels, elastic polyvinylmethyldimethoxysilane reinforced silica aerogels have been prepared successfully.

Nano-structured surface modification of micro-porous ceramic membrane with positively charged nano-Y2O3coating for organic dyes removal

Through dip-coating and thermal decomposition process, the positively charged ceramic membrane was successfully prepared for negative organic dyes removal.

Preparation of SiO2 aerogel from rice husk ash

Silica was leached from rice husk ash as sodium silicate by NaOH treatment.

Effect of air-gap length on carbon dioxide stripping performance of a surface modified polysulfone hollow fiber membrane contactor

Surface Modifying Macromolecule (SMM) blended PSf hollow fibers were spun at different air-gaps to evaluate CO₂ stripping from aqueous DEA solution and water.