• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.395-400
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• 2007

Ambient drying sol-gel processing was used for monolithic silica ambigels in the temperature range of $130-250^{\circ}C$. A new method of mesopore ambigels, which mean the aerogels prepared by ambient pressure drying process synthesis, is suggested at first. This method includes two important approaches. The first point is that $SiO_{2}$ surface modification of wet gel was performed by trimethylchlorosilane in n-butanol solution. This procedure is provided the silica gel mesopore structure formation. The second point is a creation of the ternary azeotropic mixture water/n-butanol/octane as porous liquid, which is effectively provided removing of water such a low temperature by 2 step drying condition under ambient pressure. The silica aerogels, which were prepared by ambient pressure drying from azeotropic mixture of water/n-butanol/octane, are transparent, crack-free and mesoporous (pore size ${\sim}$ 5.6 nm) with surface area of ${\sim}$ $923{\;}m^2/g$, bulk density of $0.4{\;}g/cm^3$ and porosity of 85 %.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.33 no.12
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• pp.1394-1402
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• 1996

The Silica gel with the density of 0.2g/cm3 and porosity of 90% was synthesized. The silica wet gel was dried and heat-treated under the ambient pressure after modification of the wet gel surface by TMCS. Specific surface area total pore volume and mean pore radius of dried gel were all increased with increasing heat treatment temperature and confirmed about 1400m2/g, 4.5cc/g and 8 nm respectively after heat treatment above 25$0^{\circ}C$. But the pore size distribution of dried gel was in the range of 1-100nm and was almost indepen-dent of temperature. As the result of external shape pore characteristics and microstructure of gel using SEM similar properties were observed between the silica gel synthesized in this study and the silica aerogel through the super critical drying.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.36 no.11
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• pp.1189-1197
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• 1999

Low-density silica gel monolith was synthesized at ambient pressure by surface modification with TMCS and sub-sequent heat treatment. The mechanical thermal and optical properties of gel were studied. Compressive strength and modulus of compression of 350$^{\circ}C$-heated gel with the density of 0.24g/cm3 were 250kPa and 0.2MPa respectively. The thermal conductivity of silica gels synthesized at ambient pressure exhibited 0.02 W/m$.$K for the density of 0.24g/cm3 which is similar to that of the gel via supercritical drying and their main thermal transfer mechanism is considered to be solid and radiation conduction at room temperature. Ambient-dried silica gels were transparent blue showing about 60% of transmittance in the wavelength of 1500-2100nm and typical absorption bands of existing bonds under heat treatment at 350$^{\circ}C$. Medium scale monolity(${\Phi}$=50mm) at ambient pressure could be successfully prepared through total 5-month process period.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.87-89
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• 2008

A nano structured silica aerogel thin film was manufactured from inexpensive sodium silicate (water glass) using an ambient pressure drying method. High purity silicic sol was prepared by passing a water glass solution through an ion exchange resin, and the gel films were prepared on a modified glass substrate via dip coating. The dip coating conditions, such as coating time and solvent, were optimized. The optical and physical properties of the obtained silica aerogel thin film were characterized using a UV-visable spectrometer and a scanning electron microscope.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.1-8
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• 1998

Western redcedar timber, 26 by 26cm in cross section and by 200cm long, was dried in a laboratory radio-frequency/vacuum kiln under 65torr of ambient pressure and a fixed frequency of 6.78MHz for the potential rapidly dry large timber. All process data were collected and saved in a computer through a data acquisition system. The temperature in the middle of timber was higher than temperature at the quarter point of timber length and thickness. Temperature gradients developed in the longitudinal and transverse direction of timber. The pressure in the middle of timber was higher than pressure at the quarter point of timber length. The pressure in the middle of timber was lower in the early stage of drying, and higher in the latter stage of drying than pressure at the quarter point of timber thickness. Power density was very highest during heating period and then gradually decreased. The drying curve was approximately linear and the total drying time was 27 hours from an initial moisture content(MC) of 48.6 percent to a final Me of 19.2 percent with only a few mild internal checks in the middle location of timber.

• Korean Journal of Metals and Materials
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• v.47 no.8
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• pp.516-521
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• 2009

In this study we report a rapid synthesis of nanoporous organo-functional silica (OFS) with unimodal and bimodal pore structures encompassing pores ranging from meso-to macroscale. The problems of tediousness and high production cost in the conventional syntheses are overcome by co-condensation of an inexpensive inorganic precursor, sodium silicate with an organosilane containing trimethyl groups. The insitu covalent anchoring of the non-polar trimethyl groups to the inner pore walls prohibits irreversible shrinkage of the wet-gel during microwave drying at ambient pressure and thus larger size pores (from ca. 20 to ca. 100 nm) can be retained in the dried silica. The drying process of the silylated wet-gels at an ambient pressure can be greatly accelerated upon microwave exposure instead of drying in an oven or furnace. Using this approach, anoporous and superhydrophobic silicas showing a wide variation in texture and morphology can be readily synthesized in roughly two hours. The effects of various sol-gel parameters solely on the textural properties of the organo-functional silica (OFS) have been investigated and discussed.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.173-178
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• 2006

Silica aerogel with ultra low density and high porosity has been focused on versatile application due to its fascinating properties. Ambient drying process of waterglass, in this study was researched to fabricate a crack-free monolith body in the point view of cost effective way. Wet gel was obtained by removing of $Na^{+}$ ions in waterglass, which contains 8 wt% of $SiO_{2}$. Xylene, which has a low vapor pressure, was used as a solution substitutor to prevent the formation a cracks during drying. Various surface modifiers like as hexamethyldisilazane (HMDSZ), trimethylchlorosilane (TMCS), methyltriethoxylsilane (MTES), methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS) and phenyltriethoxysilane (PTES) were used in order to improve hydrophobicity of the waterglass Silica aerogel. Some physical properties of the surface modified aerogels were investigated by FT-IR, TGA, BET and SEM. Hydrophobicity and hydrophilicity of Silica aerogel is attributed to the Si-OH bond and the non-polar C-H bond groups on the surface of aerogel. Crack-free waterglass aerogel with >90 % of porosity, 17 nm of pore size and <0.15 $g/cm^{3}$ of density was prepared. HMDSZ and TMCS are effective as a surface modifier

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.371-377
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• 2006

Nano porous, transparent silica aerogels monoliths were prepared under ambient drying (1 atm, $270^{\circ}C$) condition by the combination of sol-gel process and surface modification with subsequent heat treatment. Three kinds of solvent, n-hexane, n-heptane and xylene, were selected in the point view of low surface tension and vapor pressure in order to restrain a formation of cracks during drying. Crack-free silica aerogels with over 93 % of porosity and below $0.14g/cm^3$ of density were obtained by solvent exchange and surface modification under atmosphere condition. Optimum solvent was confirmed n-heptane among these solvents through estimation of FT-IR, TGA, BET and SEM. Modified silica aerogel exhibited a higher porosity and pore size compare to unmodified aerogels. Hydrophobicity was also controled by C-H and H-OH bonding state in the gel structure and heat treatment over $400^{\circ}C$ effects to the hydrophobicity due to oxidation of C-H radicals.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.209-213
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• 2011

Hydrophobic silica aerogel beads with low thermal conductivity and high porosity were prepared using a cost-effective sodium silicate as a silica source via an ambient-pressure drying process. Monolithic wet gels were first prepared by adjusting pH (~5) of a diluted sodium silicate solution. The silica aerogel beads (0.5~20 mm) were manufactured by breaking the wet gel monoliths under a simultaneous solvent exchange/surface modification process and an ambient-pressure drying process without using co-precursors or templates. Dried silica aerogel beads exhibit a comparable porosity ($593m^2/g$ of surface area, 34.9 nm of pore size, and $4.4cm^3/g$ of pore volume) to that of the aerogel powder prepared in the same conditions. Thermal conductivity of the silica aerogel beads (19.8 mW/mK at $20^{\circ}C$) is also identical to the aerogel powder.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.269-276
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• 2011

The synthesis behavior of nanoporous silica aerogel in the macroporous ceramic structure was observed using TEOS as a source material and glycerol as a dry control chemical additive (DCCA). Silica aerogel in the macroporous ceramic structure was synthesized via sono-gel process using hexamethyldiazane (HMDS) as a modification agent and n-hexane as a main solvent. The wet gel with a modified surface was dried at $105^{\circ}C$ under ambient pressure. The addition of glycerol appears to give the wet gel a more homogeneous microstructure. However, glycerol also retarded the rate of surface modification and solvent exchange. Silica aerogel completely filled the macroporous ceramic structure without defect in the condition of surface modification (20% HMDS/nhexane at 36hr).