Structure and thermal properties of nanospheres obtained by ethoxy silanes copolymerization

Thermal and structural characterization of organophylic nano spherical copolymers of tetra ethoxysilane (TEOS) and methyltriethoxysilane (MTEOS) or dimethyldiethoxysilane (DMDEOS) obtained by sol-gel reaction terminated by trimethylchlorosilane are described. 29 Si NMR, wide angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) and thermal analysis (TG/DTG and DTA) were employed. Due to the high reactivity of TEOS, the copolymers are silica-silicon hybrids showing bilayer structure where silica constitutes a core and a alkyl-rich chemical structure constitutes the external layer. The copolymers present higher mass lost at high temperatures than TEOS homopolymer. (author)