Influence of synthesis conditions on morphological features of SBA-15

Abstract

Mesoporous SBA-15 materials, of high specific surface area, (~700 m2 g−1), were synthesized by using block copolymer Pluronic P123 as a template and tetraethoxysilane as a silica source. The obtained materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDS) analysis, and atomic force microscopy (AFM). It was found that small modifications of synthesis conditions influenced morphological features of the synthesized SBA-15 samples. The SEM analysis has shown that the SBA-15 synthesized at a lower temperature and a longer time of reaction (80 °C, 48 h) provided elongated rod-shaped grains about 1μm long. The other sample synthesized at a higher temperature and a shorter time of reaction (100 °C, 24 h) has rounded grains and grains of regular spherical shape with diameters up to 2 μm. The EDS analysis confirmed that the particles of both synthesized samples were of SiO2 content. In addition, the AFM analysis has shown different surface morphologies of the materials synthesized under various conditions.