Template based synthesis of mesoporous silica material and its application in removal of fluorescent dyes

Dye encapsulated uniform mesoporous silica particles have been synthesized using the surfactant assisted sol gel method. The release profile of the dye in different solvents (water and ethanol) has been studied. It is observed that the release of dye is controlled by the type of solvent chosen. When dispersed in ethanol the concentration of dye molecules released is much higher than what we observe when the release is carried out under aqueous conditions. The initial increase in the fluorescence intensity in both ethanol and water is a contribution from the initial burst of dye molecules present on the outer surface. Apart from the in-situ encapsulation of the fluorescent dye, mesoporous silica particles were also used as nanocontainers for storing dye molecules. The post synthesis adsorption of the dye on mesoporous silica was also carried out and the effective concentration of the dye molecule was found to decrease with increase in time. This study shows that mesoporous silica particles can be used for the in-situ encapsulation of organic molecules and also as a host for dye molecules by employing the simple post adsorption technique.