Internal wettability investigation of mesoporous silica materials by ellipsometric porosimetry

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Internal wettability investigation of mesoporous silica materials by ellipsometric porosimetry

Furedi, Mate; Fodor, Balint; Marton, Andras; Alvarez-Fernandez, Alberto; Riaz, Aysha A; Kalha, Curran; Regoutz, Anna; ... Basa, Peter; + view all (2023) Internal wettability investigation of mesoporous silica materials by ellipsometric porosimetry. Thin Solid Films , 768 , Article 139683. 10.1016/j.tsf.2023.139683. Green open access

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Abstract

Silica-based mesoporous films have been widely applied in the fabrication of advanced functional materials, such as anti-reflective coatings, bio-, and chemical sensing devices, due to their unique properties, e.g., high surface area, controlled porosity, and the ease and tailorability of their synthesis. Precise knowledge of their pore architecture is crucial, highlighting the need for accurate characterization tools. In this sense, ellipsometric porosimetry represents a powerful and versatile characterization platform, providing access to reliable information about total porosity, pore size, pore size dispersity, mechanical properties (Young's modulus) and surface area of a great variety of mesoporous thin films. While the underlying framework of modeling capillary condensation via the Kelvin equation is well established, one descriptor, the internal wettability of mesoporous architectures remains a challenging variable for reliable material characterization. Wetting on the nanoscale cannot be observed via the traditional drop-shape method, while approximating internal wetting by the macroscopic property can be inaccurate as the two wetting behaviors do not necessarily correlate. Herein, we present a method based on vacuum ellipsometric porosimetry for the determination of the internal contact angle of functionalized mesoporous silica thin films. Tuning of the surface energy for a known mesoporous architecture by methyl-functionalization enabled us to relate differences in the pore filling for various adsorptives (water, methanol, toluene, cyclohexane) to their internal contact angles. Our study serves as a guide for generalized internal contact angle determination suitable for a wide range of organic adsorptives and mesoporous sorbent materials.

Type:	Article
Title:	Internal wettability investigation of mesoporous silica materials by ellipsometric porosimetry
Open access status:	An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI:	10.1016/j.tsf.2023.139683
Publisher version:	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsf.2023.139683
Language:	English
Additional information:	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third-party material in this article are included in the Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Keywords:	Science & Technology, Technology, Physical Sciences, Materials Science, Multidisciplinary, Materials Science, Coatings & Films, Physics, Applied, Physics, Condensed Matter, Materials Science, Physics, THIN-FILMS, ADSORPTION, POROSITY
UCL classification:	UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science > Dept of Chemical Engineering UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences > Dept of Chemistry
URI:	https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10165966