Abstract
Aminopropyl-functionalized mesoporous KIT-5 materials have been synthesized by co-condensation using carboxyl-terminated Pluronic F127 as a structure-directing agent. The KIT-5 materials synthesized with carboxyl- or hydroxyl-terminated copolymers had distinct physicochemical properties. The carboxyl end groups were crucial for forming ordered materials with high aminopropyl content, but the structural ordering decreased with increasing the loading of functional groups. While analyses suggested that significant amount of the aminopropyl groups were embedded in the silica matrix, part of them could still contribute to the chemisorption of carbon dioxide. The aminopropyl-functionalized mesoporous KIT-5 materials were applied to deposit gold, resulting in small (2-3 nm) nanoparticles uniformly dispersed inside the interconnected cagelike mesopores. © 2009 American Chemical Society.