Preparation of poly(methyl acrylate-co-itaconic anhydride)/silica hybrid materials via sol-gel process

The poly(methyl acrylate-co-itaconic anhydride)/silica hybrid materials were prepared from methyl acrylate-itaconic anhydride copolymer and tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) with the coupling agent (3-aminopropyl) triethoxysilane (APTES) via sol-gel process. The triethoxysilane-bearing polymer was prepared by the in-situ aminolysis reaction of the amino group on APTES and the unit of itaconic anhydride, By the sol gel process of TEOS and the triethoxysilane, the covalent bonds between organic and inorganic phases were introduced. The proof of this process was provided by FTIR analysis. The gel-time and sol-fraction decreased as the amount of APTES increased. DSC showed that the glass transition of the hybrids was leveled by the use of APTES and at last disappeared, From the photographs of SEM. we can see that when APTES was absent there was phase-separation. In contrast to this, in the presence of APTES, no phase separation was observed.