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Silicone polymer synthesis offers companies across various industries the ability to create products with unique characteristics that meet their specific requirements. The diverse properties of silicone rubbers, including strength, thermal resistivity, and stability, are exploited in the design of these products. Silicone polymer synthesis typically involves the use of either hydrolysis of a chlorosilane with a terminal functional group addition or polycondensation of a cyclic siloxane. These equilibrium reactions produce low-molecular-weight products with a wide range of molecular weights.
Dow researchers have developed an innovative technique for silicone polymer synthesis that utilizes a precisely controlled polymerization process to create product with uniform chain lengths. This novel synthesis involves the use of a lithium-based reactant to open a cyclic tri-siloxane ring, followed by the addition of another cyclic siloxane reagent to yield a monodispersed silicone polymer.
With the use of ReactRaman technology, the reaction can be continuously tracked in real time, eliminating the uncertainties and delays associated with offline GC analysis. The Raman method enables the measurement of reaction initiation, progress, and kinetics, ensuring that the process is proceeding as expected.
