IBN Engineers World’s First Tri-Continuous Mesoporous Silica
IBN has developed the first tri-continuous mesoporous material using a unique surfactant template
News courtesy of Singapore’s Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology
Singapore’s Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN) has developed the first tri-continuous mesoporous material using a unique surfactant template – this completely new porous structure had previously only been predicted mathematically. This novel material, which is named IBN-9 after the research institute, is the first hexagonal nanoscale construct with 3 unconnected interwoven channels. It is by far the most complex mesoporous nanostructure to have been synthesized in real-life and represents a new class of mesoporous materials.
IBN-9 demonstrates that it is possible to create three interwoven but independent pore channel systems along with a unique nano-fiber morphology. Such a mesostructure makes distinct diffusion rates in different directions possible. “This property would be very attractive for gas separation and drug delivery systems,” said IBN Executive Director Professor Jackie Y. Ying, who led this research.
