FABRICATION AND PROPERTIES OF SILICONE RUBBER/ZnO NANOCOMPOSITES VIA IN SITU SURFACE HYDROSILYLATION

The silicone rubber (SR) nanocomposites have been successfully prepared via the in situ hydrosilylation reaction in the presence of pristine ZnO and vinyl silane modified ZnO (SiVi@ZnO) nanoparticles. The structure of the pristine ZnO and SiVi@ZnO nanoparticles were analyzed by the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), respectively. The morphology, thermal stabilities, mechanical properties and thermal conductivity of the nanocomposites were also investigated. The results showed that the SiVi@ZnO nanoparticles exhibit a better dispersion in the silicone rubber than the pristine ZnO nanoparticles. The corresponding silicone rubber/SiVi@ZnO (SR/SiVi@ZnO) nanocomposites showed higher mechanical properties and thermal conductivity due to the better dispersion in silicone rubber matrix.