Casting Silica at Room Temperature Silica cannot be used with traditional molding techniques because of its very high melting temperature. In addition, conventional grinding and polishing processes limit how small and complex the silica micro-optics can be. Geltech overcame these problems by developing methods to cast net-shape (no grinding necessary) silica-glass micro-optics at room temperatu...

Ion chromatography (IC), developed by Small et al. [1], is widely recognized as a simple and powerful analytical technique for the determination of various inorganic and organic anions and cations [2]. Sulfonated and carboxylated polymer resins and silicas are commonly employed as cation−exchange stationary phases in IC for cationic species. The application of unmodified silica gels as cation−e...

Lung disorders induced by inhaled inorganic particles such as crystalline silica are characterized by chronic inflammation and pulmonary fibrosis. Here, we demonstrate the importance of type I interferon (IFN) in the development of crystalline silica-induced lung inflammation in mice, revealing that viruses and inorganic particles share similar signaling pathways. We found that instillation of ...

Silica, silica/polydimethylsiloxane and silica/polydimethylsiloxane/ calcium xerogels were examined as polymeric carriers for the controlled release of drug—Metronidazole. Characterization assays comprised analysis of the matrix by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), determining the specific surface area of solids (BET) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) techniques and further m...

Ice sheets play a more important role in the global silicon cycle than previously appreciated. Input of dissolved and amorphous particulate silica into natural waters stimulates the growth of diatoms. Here we measure dissolved and amorphous silica in Greenland Ice Sheet meltwaters and icebergs, demonstrating the potential for high ice sheet export. Our dissolved and amorphous silica flux is 0.2...

Silica aerogel microspheres based on alkali silica sol were synthesized using the emulsion method. The experimental results revealed that the silica aerogel microspheres (4-20 µm in diameter) were mesoporous solids with an average pore diameter ranging from 6 to 35 nm. The tapping densities and specific surface areas of the aerogel microspheres are in the range of 0.112-0.287 g/cm³ and 207.5-66...

Numerous luminophores may be encapsulated into silica nanoparticles (< 100 nm) using the reverse microemulsion process. Nevertheless, the behaviour and effect of such luminescent molecules appear to have been much less studied and may possibly prevent the encapsulation process from occurring. Such nanospheres represent attractive nanoplatforms for the development of biotargeted biocompatible lu...

The processing conditions for preparing well dispersed silica-graphene nanoplatelets and silica-graphene oxide nanoplatelets (GONP) composites were optimized using powder and colloidal processing routes. Fully dense silica-GONP composites with up to 2.5 vol% loading were consolidated using spark plasma sintering. The GONP aligned perpendicularly to the applied pressure during sintering. The fra...

We report a simple and rapid method for the deposition of amorphous silica onto a gold surface. The method is based on the ability of lysozyme to mediate the formation of silica nanoparticles. A monolayer of lysozyme is deposited via non-specific binding to gold. The lysozyme then mediates the self-assembled formation of a silica monolayer. The silica formation described herein occurs on a surf...

Mid-infrared spectra of a few T Tauri stars (TTS) taken with the Infrared Spectrograph on board the Spitzer Space Telescope show prominent narrow emission features indicating silica (crystalline silicon dioxide). Silica is not a major constituent of the interstellar medium; therefore, any silica present in the circumstellar protoplanetary disks of TTS must be largely the result of processing of...