Method of removing liquid from pores of a sol-gel monolith
AssigneeSimax Technologies, Inc.
InventorsShiho Wang, Ryan White, Yasar Halefoglu
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method processes a gel monolith comprising pores filled with liquid, an inner region, and an outer region. The method includes removing a portion of the liquid from the pores of the gel monolith while both the inner and outer regions of the gel monolith remain wet. The method further includes shrinking the volume of the gel monolith during the removal of a portion of the liquid, with the gel monolith becoming correspondingly more dense. The method further includes subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid from the pores of the gel monolith. Subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid includes modulating a temperature gradient between the outer region and the inner region.
Claims44
A method of processing a gel monolith comprising pores filled with liquid, an inner region, and an outer region, the method comprising:
- removing a portion of the liquid from the pores of the gel monolith while both the inner and outer regions of the gel monolith remain wet, wherein said removing comprises:
- exposing the gel monolith to a temperature within a first temperature range;
- increasing the temperature from the first temperature range to a second temperature range substantially above the boiling temperature of the liquid, wherein increasing the temperature is performed at a rate between approximately 0.01° C. and approximately 1.5° C. per hour;
- maintaining the temperature within the second temperature range for a period of time;
- and
- decreasing the temperature from the second temperature range to a third temperature range substantially below the second temperature range;
- shrinking the volume of the gel monolith during said removing a portion of the liquid, with the gel monolith becoming correspondingly more dense;
- and
- subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid from the pores of the gel monolith, wherein said subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid comprises modulating a temperature gradient between the outer region and the inner region.
A method of processing a gel monolith comprising pores filled with liquid, an inner region, and an outer region, the method comprising:
- removing a portion of the liquid from the pores of the gel monolith while both the inner and outer regions of the gel monolith remain wet, wherein said removing comprises:
- exposing the gel monolith to a temperature within a first temperature range;
- increasing the temperature from the first temperature range to a second temperature range substantially above the boiling temperature of the liquid;
- maintaining the temperature within the second temperature range for a period of time;
- and
- decreasing the temperature from the second temperature range to a third temperature range substantially below the second temperature range, wherein decreasing the temperature is performed at a rate between approximately 1° C. and approximately 10° C. per hour;
- shrinking the volume of the gel monolith during said removing a portion of the liquid, with the gel monolith becoming correspondingly more dense;
- and
- subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid from the pores of the gel monolith, wherein said subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid comprises modulating a temperature gradient between the outer region and the inner region.
A method of processing a gel monolith comprising pores filled with liquid, an inner region, and an outer region, the method comprising:
- removing a portion of the liquid from the pores of the gel monolith while both the inner and outer regions of the gel monolith remain wet;
- shrinking the volume of the gel monolith during said removing a portion of the liquid, with the gel monolith becoming correspondingly more dense;
- and
- subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid from the pores of the gel monolith, wherein said subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid comprises modulating a temperature gradient between the outer region and the inner region, wherein said subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid from the pores of the gel monolith is initiated when the gel monolith linear shrinkage is between approximately 15% and approximately 35%.
A method of processing a gel monolith comprising pores filled with liquid, an inner region, and an outer region, the method comprising:
- removing a portion of the liquid from the pores of the gel monolith while both the inner and outer regions of the gel monolith remain wet;
- shrinking the volume of the gel monolith during said removing a portion of the liquid, with the gel monolith becoming correspondingly more dense;
- and
- subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid from the pores of the gel monolith, wherein said subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid comprises modulating a temperature gradient between the outer region and the inner region, wherein said subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid from the pores of the gel monolith is initiated when an amount of liquid weighing between approximately 40% and approximately 65% of the original weight of the gel monolith is removed from the gel monolith.
A method of processing a gel monolith comprising pores filled with liquid, an inner region, and an outer region, the method comprising:
- removing a portion of the liquid from the pores of the gel monolith while both the inner and outer regions of the gel monolith remain wet;
- shrinking the volume of the gel monolith during said removing a portion of the liquid, with the gel monolith becoming correspondingly more dense;
- and
- subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid from the pores of the gel monolith, wherein said subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid comprises modulating a temperature gradient between the outer region and the inner region, wherein removing substantially all of the remaining liquid comprises exposing the outer region of the gel monolith to a temperature within a fourth temperature range, wherein the temperature within the fourth temperature range is increased at a rate between approximately 0.3 and approximately 20 days per degree Celsius.
A method of processing a gel monolith comprising pores filled with liquid, an inner region, and an outer region, the method comprising:
- removing a portion of the liquid from the pores of the gel monolith while both the inner and outer regions of the gel monolith remain wet;
- shrinking the volume of the gel monolith during said removing a portion of the liquid, with the gel monolith becoming correspondingly more dense;
- and
- subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid from the pores of the gel monolith, wherein said subsequently removing substantially all of the remaining liquid comprises modulating a temperature gradient between the outer region and the inner region, wherein removing substantially all of the remaining liquid comprises exposing the outer region of the gel monolith to a temperature within a fourth temperature range, wherein modulating the temperature gradient further comprises cycling the temperature through a plurality of cycles, wherein each cycle comprises:
- exposing the outer region to the fourth temperature range for a first time period;
- increasing the temperature from the fourth temperature range to a fifth temperature range, whereby the temperature is increased at a rate to generate a substantial temperature gradient between the outer region and the inner region;
- and
- exposing the outer region to the fifth temperature range for a second time period.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.