Redirecting the assembly of hexagonal MCM-41 into cubic MCM-48 from sodium silicate without the use of an organic structure modifier

Abstract

In contrast to earlier methods requiring the presence of organic modifiers for the preparation of cubic MCM-48 mesostructures from low cost sodium silicate, we show that this three dimensional framework structure can be readily assembled in the absence of co-surfactants simply by using the overall SiO₂/OH⁻ ratio as a means of controlling the surfactant packing parameter.