Hierarchically macro/mesoporous silica spheres for catalase immobilization and catalysis

A carrier for with hierarchically porous structure was proposed for enzyme immobilization and catalysis. The results demonstrate that immobilized catalase on this new carrier exhibits several superiorities, including 3–4 times larger adsorption amount than the commercial mesoporous silica, high catalytic efficiency close to free enzyme and better reusability. [Display omitted] •Hierarchically macro/mesoporous silica spheres were used for catalase immobilization.•Larger enzyme-loading capacity, higher activity and better reusability were obtained.•C8 modified silica was more effective with high loading capacity and stability than bare silica.•This novel structured silica was promising for enzyme immobilization. In this study, hierarchically macro/mesoporous silica sphere (HMMS) with structural macropores and skeleton mesopores was fabricated and adopted as an ideal carrier for immobilization of catalase (CAT). Compared with a commercial mesoporous silica (CMS) carrier, HMMS can immobilize much more CAT (270–300mg/g carrier) than the CMS (90–120mg/g carrier). Moreover, the immobilized CAT on HMMS exhibits comparable catalytic efficiency to the carrier-free CAT, and possesses appreciable reusability. These superiorities make HMMS a promising carrier for enzyme immobilization.