A new approach to prepare mesoporous silica using coal fly ash

•A novel industrially feasible method was proposed to prepare mesoporous silica.•Reaction intensity was introduced as a new parameter to describe reaction conditions.•Pore forming mechanism was analyzed in detail.

Even after decades of research, the preparation of mesoporous silica still depends on the sol–gel method. The major problem of sol–gel method is its infeasibility in industrial manufacturing. A large-scale preparation method is desired to meet the growing demand of mesoporous silica in multiple applications. A cost-effective and industrially feasible method was proposed to prepare mesoporous silica. The well-developed acid leaching technology was used as a novel pore forming method for treating coal fly ash. And mesoporous silica with specific surface area as high as 585.02 m2/g and pore volume of 0.54 cm3/g was successfully prepared under a control of reaction parameters. Reaction intensity was introduced as a new parameter to describe reaction conditions and help explain the variation of pore structure and shape prepared under different reaction conditions. This method is feasible in large-scale manufacturing of mesoporous silica and will satisfy the great demand for its wide applications.

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