title: Hierarchical Porous Polystyrene Monoliths from PolyHIPE.
abstract: Hierarchical porous polystyrene monoliths (HCP-PolyHIPE) are obtained by hypercrosslinking poly(styrene-divinylbenzene) monoliths prepared by polymerization of high internal phase emulsions (PolyHIPEs). The hypercrosslinking is achieved using an approach known as knitting which employs formaldehyde dimethyl acetal (FDA) as an external crosslinker. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) confirms that the macroporous structure in the original monolith is retained during the knitting process. By increasing the amount of divinylbenzene (DVB) in PolyHIPE, the BET surface area and pore volume of the HCP-PolyHIPE decrease, while the micropore size increases. BET surface areas of 196-595 m(2) g(-1) are obtained. The presence of micropores, mesopores, and macropores is confirmed from the pore size distribution. With a hierarchical porous structure, the monoliths reveal comparable gas sorption properties and potential applications in oil spill clean-up.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Large-Format Battery Materials and System, Ministry of Education, Hubei Key Laboratory of Material Chemistry and Service Failure, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China.
authors.forename: Xinjia
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Large-Format Battery Materials and System, Ministry of Education, Hubei Key Laboratory of Material Chemistry and Service Failure, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China.
authors.forename: Liangxiao
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Large-Format Battery Materials and System, Ministry of Education, Hubei Key Laboratory of Material Chemistry and Service Failure, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China.
authors.forename: Lingling
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xia
authors.affiliation: CSIRO Manufacturing Flagship, Clayton, VIC, 3168, Australia.
authors.forename: Colin D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Wood
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Large-Format Battery Materials and System, Ministry of Education, Hubei Key Laboratory of Material Chemistry and Service Failure, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China.
authors.forename: Bien
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Tan
mesh_terms: D004655:Emulsions; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D011137:Polystyrenes / Q000737:chemistry*; D016062:Porosity
chemical_list: D004655:Emulsions; D011137:Polystyrenes
keywords: hierarchical porous structures; high internal phase emulsion; knitting; monoliths; sorption