Polysiloxane/Aerogel Nanocomposites: Morphology, Thermal, and Flame-resistant Properties

This study aims to investigate the processing-structure-performance relationship of a novel polysiloxane/silica aerogel nanocomposite. Some preliminary data in this study showed promising results. Preliminary MCC analysis indicated that between Aerogel IC3110 and IC3120, the larger particle sized IC3120 variant offered better heat release capacity by about 68%. Also, preliminary TGA analysis indicated that the samples cured at 150°C and 250°C were not sufficiently cured and would require higher curing temperatures to exhibit better thermal stability. Based on the results of the preliminary data, the secondary formulation matrix was developed using UHTR resin and Aerogel IC3120 to examine the effect of curing temperatures. TGA of the secondary matrix returned excellent char yield of approximately 88% to 90% for the 400°C cured samples. The decomposition curve of the 400°C samples also indicate that the resin is fully cured at 400°C. Lastly, SEM of the control samples and 400°C samples exhibited a desirable even distribution of the aerogel additive within the UHTR resin.