Incorporation of Differently Substituted Phthalocyanines into the Mesoporous Molecular Sieve Si-MCM-41

TLDR: In this paper, phthalocyanine Zn complexes exhibiting negative, positive or no charge are incorporated in the mesopores of Si-MCM-41 materials during hydrothermal synthesis in the presence of cetyltrimethylammonium chloride.

Abstract: Substituted phthalocyanine Zn complexes exhibiting negative, positive or no charge are incorporated in the mesopores of Si-MCM-41 materials during hydrothermal synthesis in the presence of cetyltrimethylammonium chloride. The nature of the intermolecular interaction between the surfactant micelle and the capped chromophores determines (i) the resistance of the dye towards hydrolytic degradation during the synthesis and (ii) its stability of anchoring towards extraction with ethanol in the composite material. Loadings up to 2 × 10−5 mol/g molecular sieve are achieved, corresponding to an average distance between the encapsulated dye molecules between 2 and 3 nm. The UV-vis spectra reveal the non-aggregated state of the chromophores, pointing to a uniform distribution and a perfect separation by the surfactant molecules.