Porous materials via freeze-casting of metal salt solutions

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10086431-B2
Application number	US-201514741334-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 16, 2015
Priority date	Jun 16, 2015
Publication date	Oct 2, 2018
Grant date	Oct 2, 2018

Abstract

Disclosed here is a method for making a nanoporous material, comprising aerosolizing a solution comprising at least one metal salt and at least one solvent to obtain an aerosol, freezing the aerosol to obtain a frozen aerosol, and drying the frozen aerosol to obtain a nanoporous metal compound material. Further, the nanoporous metal compound material can be reduced to obtain a nanoporous metal material.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for making a nanoporous metal material, comprising:
aerosolizing a solution comprising at least one metal salt and at least one solvent to obtain an aerosol;
freezing the aerosol to obtain a frozen aerosol;
drying the frozen aerosol to obtain a nanoporous metal compound material; and
converting the nanoporous metal compound material to a nanoporous metal material, wherein the nanoporous metal material comprises at least about 40 wt. % of elemental metal.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising assembling the nanoporous metal material into a macroscopic monolith.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the solution comprising a silver salt and/or a copper salt.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the solution comprising at least two metal salts.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the solution comprising water as the solvent.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the solution is aerosolized by a nebulizer, a nozzle, a syringe, and/or a sprayer.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the aerosol has an average or mean droplet diameter of 100 microns or less.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the aerosol is frozen by contact with liquid nitrogen.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the frozen aerosol is dried in a vacuum chamber.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the frozen aerosol is dried at a temperature of about −90° C. to about 25° C.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nanoporous metal compound material is reduced by thermal or gas treatment.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nanoporous metal compound material is reduced thermally at a temperature of about 600° C. or less.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nanoporous metal compound material is reduced by light.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nanoporous metal material obtained comprises at least about 80 wt. % of elemental metal.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nanoporous metal material obtained has a porosity of at least about 30%.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nanoporous metal material obtained has a porosity of at least about 50%.

17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nanoporous metal material obtained has a density of about 1000 mg/cc or less.

18. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nanoporous metal material obtained has a density of about 100 mg/cc or less.

Assignees

• L Livermore Nat Security Llc
• Nat Tech & Eng Solutions Sandia Llc
• Lawrence Livermoe Nat Security Llc

Inventors

• Bagge-Hansen Michael
• Campbell Patrick G
• Colvin Jeffrey D
• Kucheyev Sergei
• Felter Thomas E

Classifications

• B22F1/052

  characterised by a mixture of particles of different sizes or by the particle size distribution · CPC title

• B22F1/0545

  Dispersions or suspensions of nanosized particles · CPC title

• B22F9/082

  atomising using a fluid (using centrifugal force B22F9/10) · CPC title

• B22F2304/10

  Micron size particles, i.e. above 1 micrometer up to 500 micrometer · CPC title

• B22F2009/0844

  in controlled atmosphere · CPC title