Organising disordered matter: strategies for ordering the network of mesoporous materials

Several synthesis strategies used to obtain hydrothermally stable and highly active catalysts based on ordered mesoporous materials are reviewed in this contribution. It is experimentally observed that the use of zeolite precursors as building blocks of the mesoporous network yields the most stable materials. However, the nature of the mesoporous framework of these solids remains still unknown, and basic understanding of the assembling process of zeolite precursors and surfactants has not yet been achieved. Some key features of the whole process are explored, and examples that illustrate its chemical and structural complexity are provided.