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Preparation, morphology, and mechanical properties of elastomers based on polydimethylsiloxane/ polystyrene blends
Author(s) -
Dong Jian,
Zhang Naiqiang,
Liu Zonglin
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/app.29486
Subject(s) - polydimethylsiloxane , materials science , elastomer , polystyrene , divinylbenzene , scanning electron microscope , composite material , thermoplastic elastomer , polymer chemistry , copolymer , chemical engineering , polymer , styrene , engineering
Polydimethylsiloxane/polystyrene (PDMS/PS) blends were prepared by radical copolymerization of styrene (St) and divinylbenzene (DVB) in the presence of α,ω‐dihydroxy‐polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), using benzoyl peroxide as initiator. The PDMS/PS blends obtained by this method are a series of stable, white gums, when the feed ratio of PDMS to St is 60/40 and DVB to St is not more than 2.0 wt %. Elastomers based on PDMS/PS blends were formed by crosslinking PDMS with methyl‐triethoxysilicane (MTES). The MTES dosage was much larger than the amount necessary for end‐linking hydroxy‐terminated chains of PDMS, with the excess being hydrolyzed to crosslinked networks, which were similar to SiO 2 and acted as filler. Mechanical property measurements show that the elastomers thus formed exhibit superior mechanical properties with respect to pure PDMS elastomer and the elastomers based on PDMS/PS system we prepared before. Moreover, investigations were carried out on the elastomers by extraction measurement and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The extraction data show that the sol‐fraction decreases with increasing the feed ratio of DVB to St. SEM observation demonstrates that the elastomer has a microphase‐separated structure consisting of dispersed PS domains within a continuous PDMS matrix, and the extracted material exhibits a porous structure. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009