Proceedings of MATSUS Spring 2025 Conference (MATSUSSpring25)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29363/nanoge.matsusspring.2025.206
Publication date: 16th December 2024
Aerogels are a unique class of 3-dimensional porous materials with outstanding properties like ultra-low density, a high surface area, and excellent thermal and acoustic insulation. Over the last century, aerogels have evolved significantly, with advancements in synthesis, aging, drying, and post-synthesis treatment techniques, enabling the production of aerogels with various properties and from various materials, including silica, carbon, metal oxides, and (bio-)polymers.
Within this work we will present the fascinating properties and possible applications of various aerogels in aviation, transportation and energy. We will then lay a focus on the design of semiconducting aerogels to be used as photocatalysts. Their open porous structure of interconnected particles provides interesting advantages compared to nanoparticle-based systems, such as advanced charge carrier transport, larger surface area and not being prone to agglomeration.
We will present a novel sol-gel based synthesis routes for (semi-)crystalline Titania aerogels and show that depending on the synthesis procedure the material parameters such as surface area, the polymorph present in the sample and the degree of crystallinity can be controlled and tuned. We thereby provide an alternative synthesis route for highly porous, highly crystalline Titania samples with specific surface areas of up to 600 m² g-1 can be obtained without calcination steps and thus obtain the open porous 3D structure.
The aerogel properties can be selectively controlled by the different synthesis parameters. Especially, the direct influence of acid concentration was investigated. Due to the dependence on the steric hindrance of the alkoxy ligands, the applied chloride ions coordinate in different ways to the used Titania precursor which changes the hydrolysis and condensation reaction kinetics. Also, the usage of different solvents leads to a ligand exchange of the Titania precursor which causes the formation of different intermediate complexes with coordinated chloride ions that act as templates for the formation of mixtures of anatase and brookite polymorphs with tunable ratios. Furthermore, the addition of denaturing agents typically used for lab-purpose ethanol significantly alters the material properties.
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