Hydrogen bonding directed assembly of simonkolleite aerogel by a sol–gel approach

• A new zinc-based aerogel was fabricated by a sol–gel process.
• Hydrogen bonding played a key role to form the 3D assembly of simonkolleite.
• The simonkolleite aerogel exhibited nano-size pores and high compressive modulus.
• A strong photoluminescence in a blue band was observed.

Simonkolleite aerogel is fabricated by assembling its two-dimensional nanoplatelets with the aid of hydrogen bonding. Water plays key roles during the aging and solvent exchange progresses where hydrogen bondings inside and between the nanoplatelets are formed. The freeze-dried aerogel exhibits a pore size distribution around 17–19 nm, a compressive modulus up to 2–4 MPa comparable to carbon nanotube arrays, and strong phot