Speaker
Description
The development of innovative porous materials with tailored functionalities is relevant in many applied fields, i.e. gas adsorption, filtering, air purification, catalysis, lightweight structural materials. For their peculiarities, these materials are also relevant for technologies and devices supporting long lasting space missions, human planetary exploration and in-situ resources utilisation.
Among various methodologies to produce porous materials, those based on liquid foams solidification are quite attractive. In previous studies [1], we developed a direct foaming method utilizing liquid foams stabilized by inorganic colloidal particles as template for gel-casting. Porous green-bodies are so obtained, subsequently consolidated by high temperature treatments, which eliminate the organic compounds and induce sintering of the inorganic particulate. This method was applied to different ceramic and carbonaceous systems providing solid foams with open-cell structure, high specific surface area and hierarchical porosity, proving its potentialities for the aforementioned applications. As the morphology/mechanical properties of the final porous materials depend on the liquid foams formulation and adsorption of foam-stabilizer nanoparticles, obtaining solid foams with desired features requires physicochemical investigations of the precursor composite dispersions [2].
Here we report the main results obtained using this technique and recent studies about solid foams with photocatalytic properties. The functionality of these latter is based on the photocatalytic properties of the stabilizing NPs, i.e. Zn2+ doped TiO2 nanoparticles, ad hoc synthesized at University of Paema [3]. These materials are promising for the production of new efficient filters for air-purification, to be used in many contests where contrasting the pathogen proliferation is required, like in aerospace environments during long lasting journeys, or closed loop environments, as those characterising space or planetary artificial habitats.
[1] D. Zabiegaj et al., Colloids-&-Surfaces A, 473 (2015) 24–31
[2] S. Llamas et al., Colloids-&-Surfaces A, 575 (2019) 299-309.
[3] T. Rimoldi al., J. Mater. Sci. Mater. Med. 27 (2016) 159.
| Speaker Country | Itaky |
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