Sol–Gel Route to Synthesis of Microporous Ceramic Membranes: Preparation and Characterization of Microporous TiO ₂ and ZrO ₂ Xerogels

This paper focuses on the preparation and characterization of pure TiO 2 and ZrO 2 xerogels. The preparation method is based on a sol–gel technique using metal tert ‐amyloxides as precursors to produce nano‐sized metal oxide particles which are subsequently packed in a gelation process, eventually resulting in microporous xerogele. The unsupported TiO 2 and ZrO 2 xerogele produced in this manner have a mean pore diameter less than 2 nm and more than 50% microporosity. However, these gels, in their pure form, are thermally stable only to 350°C. Improved thermal stabilities of mixed metal oxide xerogels will be reported elsewhere.