FRACTAL ANALYSIS OF A SOL-GEL-DERIVED SILICA BY ADSORPTION REVISITED

The fractal analysis of microporous solids through the molecular tilin g method is dependent on the geometry and orientation of molecules in the adsorbed phase as well as the mechanism of adsorption (monolayer-m ultilayer coverage or micropore volume-filling) occurring in the pores . The data of Sermon et al. (9) obtained with a series of n-alkanes on a microporous silica sol-gel have been reanalyzed by taking into acco unt the micropore volume-filling process as well as the linear nature of the molecules and their parallel-lying, nearest neighbor, chain con figuration on the surfaces of the sol-gel. (C) 1996 Academic Press, In c.