Maria Schestakow

Cellulose aerogels prepared from an aqueous zinc chloride salt hydrate melt.

Monolithic cellulose aerogels are prepared using a salt hydrate melt based on cheap zinc chloride tetrahydrate (ZnCl2·4H2O) that can be washed out of the wet gel-body by using common solvents such as water, ethanol, isopropanol or acetone. Cellulose aerogels with concentrations of 1-5 wt.% cellulose were produced. These aerogels are characterized with respect to shrinkage, density and surface area as well as mechanical properties and micro-structure via SEM. Cellulose aerogels regenerated in acetone show a specific surface area of around 340 m(2)g(-1) being 60% higher than those regenerated in water. The onset of irreversible plastic deformation under compressive load is around 0.8 MPa for acetone-regenerated aerogels and thus a factor of two larger compared to ethanol regenerated ones. The Youngs modulus depends almost linearly on the cellulose concentration which is observed for all regenerative fluids with the exception of water. The results achieved are presented in light of the polarity and ability of solvation of ZnCl2·4H2O in the regenerative fluids used.

Electroless synthesis of cellulose-metal aerogel composites

An environmentally benign electroless plating procedure enables a dense coating of silver nanoparticles onto complex cellulose aerogel structures. In the course of the nanoparticle deposition, the morphological characteristics of the aerogel are preserved, such as the continuous self-supporting network structure. While achieving a high metal loading, the large specific surface area as well as the low density is retained in the cellulose-metal aerogel composite. Due to the interesting features of cellulose aerogel substrates (e.g., the accessibility of its open-porous network) and electroless plating (e.g., the possibility to control the density, size, and composition of the deposited metal nanoparticles), the outlined synthetic scheme provides a facile and flexible route towards advanced materials in heterogeneous catalysis, plasmonics, and sensing.

Correlating Synthesis Parameters to Morphological Entities: Predictive Modeling of Biopolymer Aerogels

In the past decade, biopolymer aerogels have gained significant research attention due to their typical properties, such as low density and thermal insulation, which are reinforced with excellent biocompatibility, biodegradability, and ease of functionalization. Mechanical properties of these aerogels play an important role in several applications and should be evaluated based on synthesis parameters. To this end, preparation and characterization of polysaccharide-based aerogels, such as pectin, cellulose and k-carrageenan, is first discussed. An interrelationship between their synthesis parameters and morphological entities is established. Such aerogels are usually characterized by a cellular morphology, and under compression undergo large deformations. Therefore, a nonlinear constitutive model is proposed based on large deflections in microcell walls of the aerogel network. Different sizes of the microcells within the network are identified via nitrogen desorption isotherms. Damage is initiated upon pore collapse, which is shown to result from the failure of the microcell wall fibrils. Finally, the model predictions are validated against experimental data of pectin, cellulose, and k-carrageenan aerogels. Given the micromechanical nature of the model, a clear correlation—qualitative and quantitative—between synthesis parameters and the model parameters is also substantiated. The proposed model is shown to be useful in tailoring the mechanical properties of biopolymer aerogels subject to changes in synthesis parameters.