SILOXANE AND HYDROCARBON OCTOPUS MOLECULES WITH SILSESQUIOXANE CORES

Hydrogen silsesquioxane, (HSiO3/2)8, T8, has been synthesized and isol ated in synthetically useful quantities. The T8 cage-like structure al lows eight pendant groups to be placed symmetrically about the surface of a sphere to form an 'octopus' molecule. Using T8 to hydrosilylate compounds with the formula CH2=CH(X)(n)Y, octopus molecules of the for mula (SiO3/2)8(CH2CH2(X)nY), have been synthesized, including octopus molecules with organic 'arms' as well as those with silicone 'arms' of various lengths. The regioselectivity of addition in the above two ca ses was found to differ. The synthesis of these novel octapus molecule s and their characterisation by Si-29 NMR, FTIR, and gel-permeation ch romatography (GPC) is described.