Ordered mesostructured carbon templated by SBA-16 silica

A novel synthesis of ordered cubic mesoporous carbon with an Im3m symmetry by using SBA-16 silica as a hard template was performed. SBA-16 was synthesized using pluronic F 127 as the structure-directing agent and tetra- ethylorthosilicate as the silica source. Carbon replication of the surfactant-removed mesoporous silica was performed at 900°C using sucrose as a carbon source in the presence of sulfuric acid. It was found that surfactants removal method plays an important role in the formation of carbon mesostructures