ON VOID FRACTION AND THE NATURE OF POROUS SOLIDS

A new unified model of nanoporous materials, based on a relationship b etween void fraction and structure, is introduced. The reduction of th e complex pore system to a single void and the dense framework compone nts to a single dense shell is shown to help in revealing the system o f organization determining the structures of materials such as zeolite s, clay minerals, layered compounds, and bioinorganic solids. Examples are given that demonstrate the use of the model as a predictive tool and provide insights into previously unsolved problems.