Preparation of a variety of fluoroalkyl end‐capped <i>N</i>‐(1,1‐dimethyl‐3‐oxobutyl)acrylamide oligomer/silica nanocomposites possessing no weight loss characteristic at 800°C

Abstract

Abstract A variety of fluoroalkyl end‐capped N ‐(1,1‐dimethyl‐3‐oxobutyl)acrylamide oligomer [R F ‐(DOBAA) n ‐ R F ]/silica nanocomposites, in which the oligomer contents are 18–96%, were prepared by reactions of the corresponding fluorinated oligomer with tetraethoxysilane and silica nanoparticles under alkaline conditions. Each fluorinated oligomer/silica composite thus obtained is nanometer size‐controlled very fine particles (22–68 nm) possessing a good dispersibility and stability in a variety of solvents including water. Interestingly, the weight loss of R F ‐(DOBAA) n ‐R F /silica nanocomposites, in which the oligomer contents are 18–72%, were not observed at all even at 800°C, as well as the original silica nanoparticles, although the corresponding sub‐micrometer size‐controlled R F ‐ (DOBAA) n ‐R F /silica composites (particle size: 359 nm) decomposed completely at 800°C to afford the weight loss in proportion to the content of R F ‐(DOBAA) n ‐R F oligomer in composites. On the other hand, a slight weight loss of R F ‐(DOBAA) n ‐R F /silica nanocomposites, in which the oligomer contents are 75–94%, was observed at 800°C compared to that of the original silica nanoparticles. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.