Synthesis of nanoporous organic/inorganic hybrid materials with adjustable pore size

Abstract

Polystyrene (PS) nanofoams, prepared following thenanofoams continuity inversion of dispersions(NF-CID) principle, wereutilized for the synthesis of nanoporous organic/inorganic hybrid materials. The pore size and morphology of the PS foams werefound to depend on the NF-CID parameters: temperature, exposure time, and the expansion process. With this knowledge, PSfoams with a pore size of 1μm were mineralized with ZnO from a methanol precursor solution comprising zinc acetate dihydrate.Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) was used to characterize both the pure PSnanofoam and the hybrid material. The formation of a ZnO layer on the pore walls of the polymer foams was confirmed, while thegeneral structure of the foam was retained. Uniaxial compression measurements revealed larger values of theEmodulus and theyield stress for the porous PS/ZnO hybrid material compared to the pure polymer foam