The interaction between energetically asymmetric hydrophilic and hydrophobic surfaces has fundamental and practical importance in both industrial and natural colloidal systems. The interaction forces between a hydrophilic silica sphere and a silanated, hydrophobic glass plate in N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP)-water binary mixtures were measured using atomic force microscopy (AFM). A strong and lo...

Helical mesoporous silica nanofibers with parallel nanochannels were synthesized in high yield via a novel seeding-growth method by using the achiral cationic surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) as template without auxiliary additives. A general entropy-driven model taking into account the icelike structure water due to the hydrophobic effect was proposed to explain the formation o...

Due to the low separation efficiency and poor stability, traditional polymer filtration membranes are prone be polluted difficult reuse in harsh environments. Herein, we reported a nanofibrous membrane with honeycomb–like pore structure, which was prepared by electrospinning electrospraying. During electrospraying process, addition of polydimethylsiloxane fumed SiO2 formed pores electrostatic r...

A new type of nitric oxide (NO)-releasing material is described that utilizes S-nitrosothiols anchored to tiny fumed silica (FS) particles as the NO donor system. The synthetic procedures suitable for tethering three different thiol species (cysteine, N-acetylcysteine, and N-acetylpenicillamine) to the surface of FS polymer filler particles are detailed. The thiol-derivatized particles are conv...

A new heterogeneous catalyst, hydrophobic TiO4-deposited mesoporous silica, has been designed for the efficient Mukaiyama-aldol condensation, a water-participating Lewis acid-catalyzed reaction between a hydrophobic carbonyl compound and silyl enol ether. The prepared catalyst suspended in water exhibited high catalytic performance as a reusable catalyst for the reaction without a surfactant.

A series of highly dispersed Ho2O3–Yb2O3/SiO2 nanocomposites was synthesized using a liquid-phase method and examined Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), nitrogen adsorption–desorption, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), photon correlation spectroscopy (PCS). fluorescence spectrometry (XRF) confirmed similar amount we...

In our current study, supercritical water impregnation (SCWI) was introduced as a unique catalyst preparation method by employing the high diffusivity property of supercritical water. The method allows nano-particles to place on support surfaces in extremely dispersed conditions. The silica-based nanocatalyst granules for this purpose were prepared by initial impregnation of highly porous silic...

The separations of alcohols with hydrophilic and hydrophobic parts, and the separation of aromatic mixtures, are extremely important processes in gas and petroleum industries. Choosing an adsorbent for performing this separation is the most important part of the process. Silica gel is used as an adsorbent is various techniques such as pressure swing adsorption (PSA) and gas and liquid chromatog...