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Updated: Apr 4, 2026
Preparation of Functional Silica Using a Bioinspired Method
Published on: August 1, 2018
A novel processing approach for free-standing porous non-oxide ceramic supports from polycarbosilane and polysilazane
Thomas Konegger1, Rajesh Patidar2, Rajendra K Bordia3
1Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Clemson University, 161 Sirrine Hall, Clemson, SC 29634, USA ; Institute of Chemical Technologies and Analytics, Vienna University of Technology, Getreidemarkt 9/164-CT, 1060 Vienna, Austria.
Abstract:
In this contribution, a low-pressure/low-temperature casting technique for the preparation of novel free-standing macrocellular polymer-derived ceramic support structures is presented. Preceramic polymers (polycarbosilane and poly(vinyl)silazane) are combined with sacrificial porogens (ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene microbeads) to yield porous ceramic materials in the Si-C or Si-C-N systems, exhibiting well-defined pore structures after thermal conversion. The planar-disc-type specimens were found to exhibit biaxial flexural strengths of up to 60 MPa. In combination with their observed permeability characteristics, the prepared structures were found to be suitable for potential applications in filtration, catalysis, or membrane science.
