The speed at which selected reactants are reaching active sites grafted on porous silica
gels of various nature and porosity was evaluated using some model systems: protonation
of aminopropyl-grafted silica (APS), mercury(II) binding on mercaptopropyl-grafted silica
(MPS), and accumulation of copper(II) on APS. Data were obtained from batch experiments,
by monitoring the consumption of reactant in solutions containing the solid phases as
dispersed particles (average size: 60−150 μm). Various grafted solids were studied, with
pore diameter ranging between 4 and 15 nm and organic group contents of typically 1.4−1.9 mmol g-1. Diffusion processes in the porous organically modified silicas were found to
be dramatically restricted as compared to those observed in homogeneous solution (≈103−104 times slower). They were dependent on several factors such as the pore size of the material
and the size of the reactant, the density of grafted organic sites, and the nature of the starting
silica gel. Evaluation of apparent diffusion coefficients was achieved by applying a simplified
model based on spherical diffusion. This has allowed us to point out a significant decrease
in the access rates upon gradual completion of reactions: as the reactant concentration in
the vicinity of increasing amounts of grafted groups is raised progressively, there is less
room available in the porous structure to enable the probe to reach rapidly the remaining
active sites. The apparent diffusion coefficient was found to drop dramatically after typically
30−50% reaction completion, depending on the nature of the probe. This study allows
highlighting the optimal conditions that should be required to ensure efficient application
of grafted silica gels, that is, in the fields of catalysis or heavy metal extraction.