Short-period synthesis of ordered mesoporous silica SBA-15 using ultrasonic technique

Mesoporous silica SBA-15 was synthesized from rice husk ash via the ultrasonic technique in the hydrolysis-condensation stage. The effect of the time period in this stage on the mesoporous silica SBA-15 structure and physical properties was investigated and compared with those of the SBA-15 prepared by the conventional technique. It has been shown that the ultrasonic technique can be successfully applied for the synthesis of mesoporous silica SBA-15 with highly ordered hexagonal pore-arrangement and narrow PSD within the much shorter hydrolysis-condensation period. The SBA-15 products synthesized via the ultrasonic technique for the time period of 3 h have higher specific surface area, total pore volume, and microporosity than those prepared by the conventional technique for the time period of 24 h. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.