Ionic precursor surfactant interactions

The use of ionic precursors in template-directed hydrolysis-polycondensation reactions clearly indicated a strong contribution of the precursor toward the formation of structured mesophases, based on ionic precursor-surfactant interactions. The work of Che and coworkers beautifully illustrates that templating methods involving surfactant-precursor ion pairs allow accessing highly structured siuface-functionalized silica materials. However, this work exclusively focused on the use of monosilylated costructure-directing agents and the formation of siuface-fimctionalized mesoporous silica phases. 

Scheme 16.9 Ionic precursor surfactant interactions in the formation of hybrid imidazolium-containing ionosilica.

Three major classes of surfactant molecules can be harnessed for soft templating cationic, anionic, and nonionic surfactants. In soft templating, ionic surfactants typically interact with precursors via electrostatic interactions, including interactions with ions. Self-assembly processes with nonionic surfactants are primarily mediated by van der Waals interactions and hydrogen bonding. 

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