Green manufacturing of functional nanomaterials : case study of silica

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Patwardhan, Siddharth and Gokhale, Yashodhan and Manning, Joseph Richard Henry (2014) Green manufacturing of functional nanomaterials : case study of silica. In: 3rd Annual EPSRC Manufacturing the Future Conference, 2014-09-23 - 2014-09-24. (Unpublished)

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Abstract

AbstractThe invention of mesoporous silicas, which offer well-defined and tunable pores with applications in medicine, separations and catalysis, has led to 20,000+ citations. However, because their synthesis is complex, multistep and energy intensive, they have been difficult to scale-up. We have invented an alternate green chemistry for silica synthesis1 and this presentation will demonstrate scaling-up bioinspired synthesis from mg to g-kg as a first step towards the manufacturing of functional nanomaterials.2 We will also demonstrate their applications in a wide ranging sectors such as drug delivery, biocatalysis and environmental decontamination.We will present results from our efforts towards scale-up manufacturing of bioinspired silica. A new, more industry-relevant method of mixing was investigated, and its effect on the extent of reaction was demonstrated. While using the larger vessel was found to decrease the precursor conversion and reproducibility over the smaller-scale method, carefully designed mixing was found to revert both of these to previous levels. Additionally, a method of post-processing was assessed to determine its effect on the character of the nanomaterials produced. Post-processing by acid quenching affected the structure, morphology and porosity of the silica produced. These results and on-going research will help us understand the correlation between manufacturing parameters, nanomaterials properties and their performance – a key to de novo design of novel materials.Designs of industrial scale systems for both the existing process and the bioinspired process were prepared and their detailed economic feasibility confirmed green manufacturing as a promising alternative.3 Furthermore, the green process was estimated to reduce the manufacturing carbon footprint by over 90%, mainly by reduced energy requirements in the silica formation reactions, while enabling better control and tailorability of nanomaterials properties. References: 1.Patwardhan, S.V. Biomimetic and bioinspired silica: recent developments and applications. Chem. Commun., 2011, 47, 7567-7582. 2.Patwardhan, S. V. and Perry, C. C. Synthesis of Enzyme and Quantum Dot in Silica by Combining Continuous Flow and Bioinspired Routes. Silicon, 2010, 2, 33-39. 3.Drummond, C., McCann, R. & Patwardhan, S. V. A Feasibility Study of the Biologically Inspired Green Manufacturing of Precipitated Silica. Chem. Eng. J., 2014, 244, 483-492.

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