Rodlike silica and titania objects templated on extremely dilute aqueous dispersions of self-assembled sodium lithocholate nanotubes

Simple methods for preparation of mesoporous rodlike silica and titania nanoobjects, some with exceedingly high aspect ratios, are described. They involve hydrolytic sol–gel processes using nanotubes from aqueous assemblies of very dilute (0.1 wt%) sodium lithocholate as templates. Shearing of the lithocholate nanotubes results in aligned, templated silica rods. The relative rates of lithocholate self-assembly and of polymerization of the titania precursors, especially, appear to be important factors in templating efficiency.

Graphical abstractRodlike silica and titania nanoobjects are templated onto nanotubes of sodium lithocholate in very dilute aqueous media. The templated silica rods are easily aligned by shear.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide