Nature has demonstrated the ability to form ceramic materials with a high degree of structural control. While the templation of silica based ceramics using organic templates in low pH media has been successfully demonstrated, the use of more reactive metal oxides has proven problematic. The templation of silica from the commonly used silica precursor, tetraethoxysilane (TEOS), is possible because the hydroxylated product, formed in aqueous solutions at low pH, condenses slowly enough to allow for templation prior to full condensation. The fast condensation of other metal precursors results in condensed materials that are not templated prior to condensation. Using a polymer inspired by the natural protein Silicatein a. ??we have developed a biomimetic polymer that serves as both a templating agent and a catalyst for the hydrolysis of reactive metal alkoxides, avoiding the issue of the reactive hydrolyzed precursors needing to migrate to the template prior to full condensation.

Bioinspired catalytic template for ceramic condensation

243rd National Meeting (2012)

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