Preparation and properties of porous polyimide films with TiO2/polymer double shell hollow spheres

Without the template removal process, double shell hollow spheres were prepared by encapsulating the polymeric hollow spheres with TiO2 shells. TiO2 encapsulated hollow spheres were incorporated with the polyamic acid solutions and imidized to prepare the porous polyimide films. The final porous texture of the film depends on the as-doped arrangement and the properties of the hollow spheres. The TiO2 shell exhibits good thermal stability and chemical resistance to prevent the collapse of hollow spheres during the polyamic acid solution/hollow particle mixing and the imidization procedures. The effects of preparation conditions on the morphology of the encapsulated hollow spheres were investigated. The dielectric constant of the porous polyimide films (pore diameter around 0.6 mu m) decreased to 2.8. The influences of hollow particles on the porous textures, the dielectric and dynamic mechanical properties of the porous films were studied. (c) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.