Topological construction of mesoporous materials

Major advances in the field of ordered mesoporous materials have been achieved in topological structure definition at the meso phase, and macroscale levels (shape and morphology) using molecular control during mesoporous materials synthesis. Examples include the use of block copolymers for the preparation of mesoporous materials with large pore sizes ($̆30 nm), the formation of mesoporous silica with 3D periodically ordered cage-structures, and the fabrication of selected mesoporous silica having designated macrostructures, including fibers, thin films and monoliths along with hollow and transparent hard spheres. The judicious integration of hydrogen—bonding interactions at the organic/inorganic interface with organic/inorganic domain assembly and the use of sol-gel and emulsion chemistry in acidic media proves to be a general route for the syntheses of mesoporous materials with potential applications in catalysis, sensors, separations, optoelectronics, and functional nanomaterial fabrication.