Preparation and properties of polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane polymers

Polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) polymers were synthesized by the dehydrogenative condensation of (HSiO3/2)8 with water in the presence of diethylhydroxylamine followed by trimethylsilylation. Coating films were prepared by spin-coating of the coating solution prepared by the dehydrogenative condensation of POSS. The hardness of the coating films was evaluated using a pencil-hardness test and was found to increase up to 8H with increases in the curing temperature. Free-standing film and silica gel powder were prepared by aging the coating solution at room temperature. The silica gel powder was subjected to heat treatment under air atmosphere to show a specific surface area of 440 m2 g−1 at 100 °C, which showed a maximum at 400 °C as 550 m2 g−1. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.