Synthesis of functionalized SBA-15 with ordered large pore size and its adsorption properties of BSA

SBA-15, mesoporous material, is a very excellent candidate for drug delivery system because its pore size is easy to control according to synthesis conditions and the presence of swelling agent. In this study, a known swelling agent, 1,3,5-trimethylbenzene (TMB), was used to increase the pore size with increased aging temperature and prolonged aging time. Furthermore, 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) was incorporated on SBA-15 surface via post synthesis method to separate protein effectively. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), nitrogen adsorption and desorption analyses, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR). Adsorption capacity increased with temperature at the isoelectric point (pI) of bovine serum albumin (BSA) regardless of the pore size of SBA-15 samples. Release studies were carried out in the range of pH from neutral to basic solution on unmodified and amine-modified samples. In addition, the adsorption mechanism was investigated by employing the pseudo-first order, pseudo-second order, and intraparticle diffusion models.