Growth of silica particles in surfactant gel

Growth of silica particles produced by the hydrolysis of tetraethoxy silane (TEOS) in gels of the cationic surfactant, cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB), was investigated by static light scattering and dynamic light scattering measurements. The time evolution of the size of the silica particles was estimated by the static and the dynamic correlation lengths obtained from the two measurements. Both the growth rate and the final size were smaller at higher concentrations of CTAB, indicating that a more confined network exerted a more restrictive effect on the particle growth. The random motion of silica particles was more severely restricted when the particle was larger and the network mesh size was smaller at higher CTAB concentrations. This restriction of movement resulted in the cessation of the growth of silica particles.