Silikon-üre kopolimer ve kompozitlerinin sentez ve karakterizasyonu

Novel, segmented thermoplastic silicone-urea (TPSU) copolymers based on fairly high molecular weight aminopropyl terminated polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) soft segments ( 10,800 and 31,500 g/mole), a cycloaliphatic diisocyanate (HMDI) and various low molecular weight diamine chain extenders were prepared and characterized. One of our goals in this study was to understand the influence of PDMS soft segment length on the tensile properties and hysteresis behavior TPSU copolymers. Copolymers with very low urea hard segment contents of 1.24 to 5.14% by weight were prepared. Although the copolymers had fairly low hard segment contents, they all formed films, showed very good microphase separation and displayed reasonably good mechanical properties. When silicone urea copolymers with identical urea hard segment contents were compared, those based on PDMS-31,500 showed higher tensile strengths than those of PDMS-10,800. In addition, PDMS-31,500 based silicone-urea copolymers also displayed lower hysteresis values when compared with PDMS-10,800 based TPSU or even with chemically crosslinked silicone rubbers. Critical entanglement molecular weight (Me) of PDMS is about 25,000 g/mol. We believe chain entanglement in PDMS-31,500 have a synergistic effect on the tensile properties and hysteresis behavior of the silicone-urea copolymers. Second goal of our research effort was to understand the effect of fumed silica fillers on the properties of silicone-urea copolymers. Hydrophobic silica filled silicone-urea copolymers, containing up to 37.5% by weight of silica were prepared for the first time. Incorporation of hydrophobic silica into silicone-urea copolymers based on PDMS-31,500 dramatically increased the modulus, tensile strength and elongation at break values of these copolymers. Silica incorporation had a slight negative effect on the hysteresis behavior. Presence of interaction between silica and the TPSU copolymers were also investigated by FTIR spectra.