Hybrid Mesoporous Silicas and Microporous POSS-Based Frameworks Incorporating Evaporation-Induced Self-Assembly

We fabricated a series of mesoporous silicas and mesoporous organosilicates with hierarchical porosity through evaporation-induced self-assembly using Pluronic F127 as a template in this study. We could tailor the mesophase of each mesoporous silica sample by varying the weight ratio of its two silica sources: tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) and triethoxysilane hydrosilylated octavinyl polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (OV-POSS-SILY). The mesophases ranged from an ordered body-centered cubic (bcc) structure (TEOS alone) to ordered face-centered cubic (fcc) structure (10 and 20 wt.% of OV-POSS-SILY) and finally to disordered spherical pores (≥30 wt.% of OV-POSS-SILY). We used small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to study the transformations of these mesophases, while N(2) isotherm sorption curves revealed the porosities of these mesoporous silicate samples. Moreover, (29)Si CP/MAS solid state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy allowed us to analyze the compositions of the POSS-containing silicate frameworks. Such functional mesoporous silica samples incorporating microporous POSS building units have potential applications in various systems, including optical and electronic devices.