Influence of annealing conditions on the properties of reinforced silver-embedded silica matrix from the cheap silica source

The influence of annealing conditions on the properties of reinforced silver-embedded silica matrix was systematically investigated in the present study. The samples were prepared via a recently reported method using sodium silicate as a silica precursor. Aluminium ions were used to reinforce and improve the chemical durability of silver-embedded silica; and the mole ratio of the precursors was fixed at Al/Ag = 1. The properties of the final product were examined in relation to its counterparts; namely pure silica, aluminium-embedded silica (without silver), and silver doped silica (without aluminium). The materials were heat treated at the range of 600–1000 °C under the constant supply of argon (inert atmosphere). The properties of the final product were compared with those of the previously reported materials prepared via the same method but calcined in air. The current material was found to have pure silver nanoparticles (without AgCl nanoparticles) while the previous material had both silver and AgCl nanoparticles. The results demonstrate that materials with more desirable properties can be obtained by this newly developed technique while utilizing sodium silicate, which is relatively cheap, as a silica precursor. This may significantly boost the industrial production of the silver-embedded silicas for various applications.