Surface modification of nanosilica with acrylsilane-containing tertiary amine structure and their effect on the properties of UV-curable coating

In order to improve the dispersion of nanosilica and the mechanical properties of UV-curable coating, nanosilica was modified with acrylsilane-containing tertiary amine structure, which was synthesized by the Michael addition reaction between 3-aminopropyl triethoxysilane and tripropylene glycol diacrylate. The prepared acrylsilane was characterized by H-1 NMR, C-13 NMR, and FTIR. The modified nanosilica was characterized by FTIR, TGA, and SEM. The TGA analysis showed that the grafting percentage of acrylsilane based on nanosilica was 72.4 wt%. The SEM results showed that the agglomeration of nanosilica was reduced and the dispersion was improved due to the acrylsilane modification. The viscosities of UV-curable coatings with modified nanosilica were determined and it was found that the viscosities of the coatings decreased in comparison with the viscosities of coatings with unmodified nanosilica. The photo-DSC results indicated that both nanosilica and modified nanosilica also decreased the UV-curing speed and final percentage conversion, while the conversion of the coatings containing modified nanosilica was faster than that with unmodified nanosilica owing to the tertiary amine structure and acrylate structure on the surface of the modified nanosilica.