Reactive Hybrid of Polyhedral Oligomeric Silsesquioxane (POSS) and Sulfur as a Building Block for Self-Healing Materials

Abstract

This work demonstrates a new reactive and functional hybrid (S-MMA-POSS) of polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) and sulfur prepared with a direct reaction between a multifunctional methacrylated POSS compound (MMA-POSS) and elemental sulfur (S₈ ) through the "inverse vulcanization" process. S-MMA-POSS is an effective building block for imparting self-healing ability to the corresponding thermally crosslinked POSS-containing nanocomposites through a self-curing reaction and co-curing reaction with conventional thermosetting resins. Moreover, S-MMA-POSS is also a useful precursor for preparation of materials with high transparency in mid-infrared region.

Keywords: nanocomposites; polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane; self-healing; vulcanization.