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Facile processing of clays into organically‐modified aerogels
Author(s) -
Somlai Louis S.,
Bandi Suneel A.,
Schiraldi David A.,
Mathias Lon J.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
aiche journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.958
H-Index - 167
eISSN - 1547-5905
pISSN - 0001-1541
DOI - 10.1002/aic.10710
Subject(s) - pulmonary surfactant , porosimetry , chemical engineering , composite number , aqueous solution , materials science , fourier transform infrared spectroscopy , characterization (materials science) , chemistry , composite material , nanotechnology , porosity , organic chemistry , porous medium , engineering
A facile process for the conversion of clay powders to organically modified clay aerogels (OMCAs) is reported. The resultant clay aerogels are of potential interest for a variety of applications, by themselves, or as a component in composite materials. Freeze‐drying aqueous clay‐surfactant solutions isolates these highly organized materials. Robust OMCAs are formed from clay‐surfactant compositions that initially produce stable surfactant modified clay‐water suspensions. Characterization of the OMCA by FTIR, WAXD, and TGA confirms the retention of surfactant after freeze‐drying, while SEM and porosimetry data show a structural reorganization of clay sheet bundles. © 2005 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2006