INSITU POLYMERIZATION OF TETRAETHOXYSILANE IN POLYMERS - CHEMICAL NATURE OF THE INTERACTIONS

The formation of molecular composites by the in situ polymerization of tetraethoxysilane in various organic polymers has been studied. The r esults show that highly homogeneous, transparent composites can be for med for polymers such as poly(methyl methacrylate), poly(vinyl acetate ), poly(vinyl pyrrolidone), and poly(N,N-dimethylacrylamide). These co mposites have improved mechanical properties and increased solvent res istance. Strong interactions between the SiO2 networks and these polym ers were observed, and the data suggest hydrogen bonding between resid ual hydroxyls on the SiO2 and carbonyl groups on the polymer chains as the major source of these interactions.