Elucidating the Changes in Molecular Structure at the Buried Interface of RTV Silicone Elastomers during Curing

Silicone elastomers are widely used in many industrial applications, including coatings, adhesives, and sealants. Room-temperature vulcanized (RTV) silicone, a major subcategory of silicone elastomers, undergoes molecular structural transformations during condensation curing, which affect their mech...

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Veröffentlicht in:Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids. - 1992. - 40(2024), 11 vom: 19. März, Seite 5968-5977
1. Verfasser: Lin, Ting (VerfasserIn)
Weitere Verfasser: Wu, Yuchen, Santos, Elizabeth, Chen, Xiaoyun, Gubbels, Frederic, Shephard, Nick, Mohler, Carol, Ahn, Dongchan, Kuo, Tzu-Chi, Chen, Zhan
Format: Online-Aufsatz
Sprache:English
Veröffentlicht: 2024
Zugriff auf das übergeordnete Werk:Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids
Schlagworte:Journal Article
Beschreibung
Zusammenfassung:Silicone elastomers are widely used in many industrial applications, including coatings, adhesives, and sealants. Room-temperature vulcanized (RTV) silicone, a major subcategory of silicone elastomers, undergoes molecular structural transformations during condensation curing, which affect their mechanical, thermal, and chemical properties. The role of reactive hydroxyl (-OH) groups in the curing reaction of RTV silicone is crucial but not well understood, particularly when multiple sources of hydroxyl groups are present in a formulated product. This work aims to elucidate the interfacial molecular structural changes and origins of interfacial reactive hydroxyl groups in RTV silicone during curing, focusing on the methoxy groups at interfaces and their relationship to adhesion. Sum frequency generation (SFG) vibrational spectroscopy is an in situ nondestructive technique used in this study to investigate the interfacial molecular structure of select RTV formulations at the buried interface at different levels of cure. The primary sources of hydroxyl groups required for interfacial reactions in the initial curing stage are found to be those on the substrate surface rather than those from the ingress of ambient moisture. The silylation treatment of silica substrates eliminates interfacial hydroxyl groups, which greatly impact the silicone interfacial behavior and properties (e.g., adhesion). This study establishes the correlation between interfacial molecular structural changes in RTV silicones and their effect on adhesion strength. It also highlights the power of SFG spectroscopy as a unique tool for studying chemical and structural changes at RTV silicone/substrate interface in situ and in real time during curing. This work provides valuable insights into the interfacial chemistry of RTV silicone and its implications for material performance and application development, aiding in the development of improved silicone adhesives
Beschreibung:Date Revised 19.03.2024
published: Print-Electronic
Citation Status PubMed-not-MEDLINE
ISSN:1520-5827
DOI:10.1021/acs.langmuir.3c03978