Ethanol washing effect on textural properties of the sodium silicate-derived silica xerogel

This study deals with the use of ethanol as washing solvent in the preparation of the silica gels from sodium silicate in order to enhance the textural properties, especially surface area. We here examined the effect of ethanol-washing on surface area, micro- and mesopore volume, and average pore size. The silica xerogels prepared from sodium silicate solution exhibited an extremely high surface area of 1139 m²/g by washing their hydrogels with ethanol. Compared to water-washed xerogels, ethanol-washed xerogels showed higher surface areas, total pore volumes, and larger average pore sizes. Unlike the surface area of water-washed xerogel, that of the ethanol-washed xerogel was not affected by the silica concentration of initial solution. This study indicates that the textural properties of sodium silicate-derived xerogels are further enhanced by using ethanol as washing solvent.