Synthesis of polyferromethylsiloxane sorbents using a sol-gel method

Abstract

Trivalent iron complexes which could be easily converted into materials are formed by the reaction of FeCl₃ with K₃[O₃SiMe] in a highly concentrated aqueous alkaline solution. The presence of the liquid glass as an additive and decreasing the pH results in solutions that give rise to homogeneous gels. Polycondensation proceeds very rapidly in the higher pH range (viz. pH 9-10) and substantially slower in an acidic medium (pH 2-3). Xerogels were obtained having microporous structure after treatment of polyferromethylsiloxane gels obtained from acidic medium or mesoporous structure when obtained from alkaline medium.