Versatile Cascade Esterification Route to MQ Resins.

We describe a versatile cascade route for manufacturing MQ resins using alkoxysilanes (e.g., tetraethoxysilane (TEOS)) or equivalent oligomers (e.g., ethyl polysilicate (polyTEOS)), a carboxylic acid (typically acetic acid), and hexamethyldisiloxane (MM) as starting materials; a strong acid catalyst is also employed in the one-pot reaction. The siloxane resin synthesis is accompanied by esterification of the carboxylic acid to give ethyl acetate, which acts as an important solvent, making the process more controllable. Contrary to traditional sol-gel methods, no water is introduced in the experiments, but is generated in situ. The strategy offers several advantages, including reproducibility, high yields of siloxane resins with excellent batch-to-batch consistency and without gel formation, narrow dispersity, low Si-hydroxyl residues in the final products, and the ability of increasing the molecular weight by thermal treatment. The process utilizes the green chemistry concepts of lower pollutant formation and higher atom efficiency.

Introduction

MQ resins (M = Me3SiO1/2, Q = SiO4/2) are attracting increasing attention because of their excellent heat resistance, flexibility over an extremely wide temperature range, film-forming properties, water resistance, and ability of acting as performance modifiers. Therefore, they are utilized in a broad range of applications including liquid silicone rubber, pressure-sensitive adhesive, light-emitting diode encapsulation, electronics, personal care, nanomaterials, and so on.[1] MQ resins have been interested increasingly by the silicone industrial community and were rediscovered by academics in the report of Flagg and McCarthy in 2016.[2]

Traditionally, the synthesis of siloxane resins involves hydrolysis/condensation processes that were invented and patented by Hyde[3] for silsesquioxanes and by Daudt and Tyler for MQ resins (Figure ).[4] These processes and the properties of silsesquioxanes were reviewed by Baney et al.[5] There are several disadvantages associated with traditional hydrolysis/condensation synthetic processes using chlorosilanes or organoalkoxysilanes as starting materials. Most problematically, the reactions occur too rapidly to permit effective control, and the formation of gels or insoluble white powders is a common outcome.

Figure 1

Traditional hydrolysis/condensation processes used to create MQ resins.

One modified strategy to avoid this problem, in part, involves a slower and more controlled hydrolysis typically carried out in an organic solvent/water biphase system capable of dissolving chlorosilanes and/or siloxane oligomers; commonly used solvents include aromatics and chlorinated hydrocarbons. The product of the process is a dispersion of SiOH-rich siloxane resins. Even when the reaction temperature is well controlled carefully, these processes are still associated with challenges in terms of process complexity, including the need for solvent extraction, separation, and purification. Batch inconsistency, broad molecular weight (Mw) dispersity, formation of gels, and low yields are often associated with the process.[2] At a commercial level, the manufacture of MQ resins is associated with the need to responsibly dispose of large amounts of wastewater containing acids, salts, alcohol, and organic solvents to meet environmental regulations. To address many of the problems listed above, we have investigated a cascade esterification route to MQ resins based on silane reagents.

Sumrell and Ham showed that SiCl4 catalyzed the esterification of carboxylic acids with alkylorthosilicates (alkyl = methyl, ethyl, and isopropyl). Although they were not concerned with the end state of the silicon compounds, the method shows precedent for this work.[6] HCl is presumably the active acid catalyst. Milder acids are also effectively employed in the siloxane resin formation. Eisenberg et al. reported silsesquioxanes derived from formic acid and functional methoxysilanes, without acid catalyst; polycondensation was performed for a period of time from 2 days to 1 month.[7] In an analogous process, Egorova et al. investigated in detail the mechanism and kinetics of the polycondensation of dimethoxydimethylsilane with excess anhydrous deuterated acetic acid (CD3COOD) as an active medium. They demonstrated that, in the absence of strong acids, esterification is the slowest step of the multistep process that leads to siloxanes, in this case, linear dimethylsilicone fluids.[8] This process can be used to synthesize MQ copolymers, as reported by Vasil’ev et al., product formation using tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) ((SiOEt)4), trimethylmethoxysilane, and a large excess of acetic acid required 35 h at reflux with toluene as the solvent.[9]

The rates of both transesterification and polysiloxane formation are accelerated when both weak and strong Brønsted acids are present in the reaction medium. Ivanova et al. reported that partial polycondensation of RSi(OMe)3 (R = C6H5, CH3) to give polycyclic structures with branched fragments, accompanied by transesterification, was rapid in the presence of HCl and an excess of acetic acid. The reaction has an induction period that could be substantially shortened by the addition of HCl or methanol.[10]

These studies and related work by Muzafarov demonstrated that siloxane bond formation can be elicited by acidic transesterification processes.[11] As noted, the reaction is slow in the absence of strong acids. The above processes described typically utilized excess acetic acid as an active medium. These reactions have failed to find their industrial value and applications because of the inefficiencies, slow reaction times, and, especially in manufacturing processes, the difficulty in eliminating excess, corrosive acetic acid.

Results

We report that a one-pot cascade esterification reaction of either tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) or its partially hydrolyzed product, polyTEOS, at reflux using only stoichiometric quantities of carboxylic acid with respect to OEt groups, Me3SiOSiMe3 (MM) as the “M” reagent rather than an alkoxytrimethylsilane, and in the presence of a strong acid significantly enhances the efficiency and utility of the process for MQ resin synthesis (Figure ). We judge efficiency by considering ease of isolation, product yield, and product constitution, including molecular weight and the dispersity (ĐM) of the MQ resin by gel permeation chromatography (GPC).

Figure 2

Cascade esterification process for siloxane resin formation.

Initial experiments were undertaken with Si(OEt)4 to facilitate an understanding of the MQ synthesis process. Siloxane resins were synthesized concomitant with esterification of the carboxylic acid, generally using ∼1 equiv of acetic acid/OEt group (Table ). The results were compared to those obtained by traditional hydrolysis (Table ). The generated “byproduct”—ethyl acetate—acted as a solvent such that the reaction is homogeneous throughout the reaction process. An exotherm was observed once the strong acidic catalyst was added (Figure ). Siloxane resin products were obtained simply via neutralization, typically using Na2CO3 (aq), separation by filtration, and distillation of the ethyl acetate coproduct from the siloxane product. The process was completed by gentle heating to remove residual solvent.

Table 1

Influence of Acidic Catalysts on the Esterification Reaction

expt.	variable	reagents	catalyst	mol %a	M/Q	HOAc/OEt	yield (%)	Mnb	Mwb	ĐMb
1	catalyst	TEOS	CF3SO3H	4.2	0.8	1.1	96.1	981	1416	1.44
2		TEOS	H2SO4c	6.4	0.8	1.1	96.2	1657	2677	1.62
3	[acid]	TEOS	H2SO4	2.1	0.8	1.1	98.6	1162	1646	1.41
4			H2SO4	10.4	0.8	1.1	96.3	1380	1905	1.38
5	M/Q	polyTEOS	H2SO4	7.2	0.8	1.2	97.14	2338	4051	1.94
6		polyTEOS	H2SO4	7.2	0.9	1.2	94.06	2229	3596	1.61
7		polyTEOS	H2SO4	7.2	1.0	1.2	93.82	1855	2634	1.42
9	reagent	polyTEOS	H2SO4	1.5	0.8	1.1	96.5	1313	1848	1.41
10		TEOS	H2SO4	2.1	0.8	1.1	93.2	1247	1793	1.44
11	hydrolysis	polyTEOS	HCl	6.3	0.8	NA	84.9	2660	4425	1.66

With respect to TEOS.

Determined by GPC.

98% H2SO4. See also the Experimental Section for other formulae.

Table 2

Synthesis of MQ Silicone Resins by Hydrolysis

expt.	M/Q ratio	yield (%)	Mn	Mw	ĐM
1	0.68	77.07	2782	5040	1.8116
2	0.80	84.89	2660	4425	1.6635
3	0.85	89.63	2257	3299	1.4617
4	0.90	90.67	1919	2601	1.3554
5	0.95	90.00	1875	2493	1.3296
6	1.00	89.07	1679	2164	1.2889

Figure 3

Temperature profile for esterification reactions catalyzed by different acidic catalysts. Heating was applied starting at 60 min. (1) 98% H2SO4, (2) CF3SO3H, (3) CH3COCl, (4) Me3SiCl, and (5) FeCl3 (Table ).

Table 3

Influence of Catalysts on the Esterification Reaction

expt.	catalyst	dosage (g)	mmol	mol % vs TEOS	yield (%)	Tmax (°C)a	Mnb	Mwb	ĐM
TEOS (M/Q 0.8; HOAc/OEt 1.1:1)
1	98% H2SO4	3.18	31.8	6.36	96.2	55	1657	2677	1.6156
2	CF3SO3H	3.14	20.8	4.16	96.1	60	981	1416	1.4434
3	CH3COCl	3.15	38.9	7.78	94.6	31	1365	2279	1.6696
4	Me3SiCl	3.18	28.7	5.74	96.6	30	2513	4475	1.7807
5	FeCl3	3.26	19.5	3.90	45.0	40	2566	4686	1.8262
6	cation-exchange resinc	3.12	2.46	0.49	76.9	30	3966	32 323	8.1500

Maximum temperature of the reaction in the first hour.

Determined by GPC using polystyrene (PS) standards.

Refers to mol % H+. The catalyst was titrated and shown to provide 0.79 mequiv H+/g.

A variety of strong acidic catalysts was tested, including strong acids such as trifluoromethanesulfonic acid, 98% sulfuric acid, p-toluenesulfonic acid, and some other acidic substances, including Lewis acid (FeCl3, AlCl3, SnCl2), acetyl chloride, trimethylchlorosilane, and tetrachlorosilane (Tables and 4). Although the most effective catalyst was triflic acid based on the (small) amount required, a unimodal GPC curve (Figure ), an enhanced rate of reaction, and the lowest SiOH concentration (see below), the best balance of performance and cost was provided by sulfuric acid; similar products were observed (1 vs 2, Tables and 3). Use of 98% H2SO4 at 2 wt % was found to balance the speed and efficiency of the reaction (Table ).

Table 4

Influence of H2SO4 Concentration on MQ Resin Characteristics

expt.	H2SO4 (wt %)	yield (%)	Mn	Mw	ĐMa
TEOS (M/Q 0.80; HOAc/OEt 1.1:1)
1	0.1	102.3b	1093	1968	1.80
2	1	98.6	1162	1646	1.41
3	3	95.5	1202	1532	1.27
4	5	96.3	1380	1905	1.38
5	10	96.5	1382	1936	1.40
TEOS (M/Q 0.68; HOAc/OEt 0.75)
1	0.3	96.1	2227	7068	3.17
2	1	92.5	3230	6370	1.97
3	2	95.0	3388	5936	1.75

Determined by GPC.

The excess material demonstrates that traces of alcohol reside in the product.

Figure 4

GPC traces of MQ resins formed using different acidic catalysts.

Having demonstrated the key characteristics of the reaction with TEOS, analogous reactions were examined with its hydrolyzate, which comprises partly condensed TEOS (Q-oligomers, with one-half the OEt groups), requiring less acetic acid and producing less ethyl acetate; safety issues associated with TEOS are avoided. In addition, longer reaction times led to higher Mw products, but with accompanying higher dispersities. Otherwise, compared to TEOS, it was found that very similar reaction outcomes could be observed (9 vs 10; Tables and 5). Surprisingly, small changes in the acid concentration and drying protocol can lead to increases in Mw of the products, but little change in dispersity (Tables and 6; Figure ). Reaction times of about 4 h were optimal (Table ).

Table 5

Differences in Resins Formed from PolyTEOS or TEOS

expt.	precursor	yield (%)	Mn	Mw	ĐM
1	polyTEOS	96.5	1313	1848	1.4075
2	TEOS	93.2	1247	1793	1.4379

Table 6

Effect of Drying Time on Product Characteristics

expt.	time (h)	temperature (°C)	Mn	Mw	ĐM
PolyTEOS (M/Q 0.8; HOAc/OEt 1.1:1)
1	0	22	1032	1458	1.4128
2	3	22	1039	1511	1.4543
3	3	60	1090	1575	1.4450
4	3	80	1313	1970	1.5004
5	3	100	1849	2830	1.5306
6	3	120	2228	3702	1.6616
7	3	150	2499	4349	1.7403
8	3	180	2674	4810	1.7988

Figure 5

Examples of changes in molecular weight with thermal treatment corresponding to Table . The legend refers to temperature (e.g., 22 = 22 °C) and time is in hours.

Table 7

Effect of Reaction Time on MQ Siloxan Resin Characteristics

expt.	time (h)a	yield (%)	Mn	Mw	ĐM
PolyTEOS (M/Q 0.8; HOAc/TEOS 1.1:1)
1	0	93.23	2490	7898	3.1719
2	1	94.32	2622	5630	2.1472
3	2	90.00	2341	4846	2.0701
4	3	91.63	2483	4898	1.9012
5	4	90.06	2621	4979	1.8997
6	5	93.79	2591	4928	1.9020

An approximately stoichiometric amount of acetic acid (CH3COOH/OEt = 1.1:1 or less) was used in the described manufacturing route, which is a key distinction from previous research. The absence of excess acetic acid or water reduces the technical challenges and costs of workup, as the “byproduct” of the reaction is primarily ethyl acetate. An analysis of the distillate fraction by gas chromatography (GC) showed that MM was completely consumed in the reaction, which means that all MM is converted into MQ copolymers (Figure ). This is too beneficial, as the distilled ethyl acetate stream is not contaminated by MM.

Figure 6

GC analysis showing no MM in the MQ resin product.

Characterization of the product MQ resins showed them to be quite different from products of hydrolysis (5–7 vs 11, Table ). In particular, there was less residual SiOH (or SiOEt) in the resins produced by this cascade esterification, as shown by infrared analysis. Preliminary studies showed that the Si–OH concentration could be further reduced by gentle heating. For example, the low concentration of SiOH groups apparent from the signal near 3450 cm–1 after drying at 60 °C for 3 h had nearly disappeared if instead the drying temperature was 120 °C for 3 h (Figure ).

Figure 7

Infrared analysis of (A) MQ resin produced by hydrolysis and produced by the described method using TfOH as the catalyst; (B) a polyTEOS-derived resin dried under vacuum at low temperature (60 °C) or higher temperature (120 °C) for 3 h.

A second difference found with products from this process involved the molecular weight distributions. Lower M/Q ratios, unsurprisingly, led to higher Mw materials (5–7, Tables and 8). Samples dried at 60 °C exhibited a nearly unimodal distribution with ĐM near 1.4. By contrast, samples heated at 120 °C for 3 h showed a bimodal weight distribution almost without Si–OH residues but with a wider bimodal peak and ĐM of 1.6–1.8 (Table ). Thus, practically, one can tune residual SiOH and Mw profiles by the time/temperature of postreaction heat cure treatment.

Table 8

Synthesis of MQ Silicone Resins by Esterification at Different M/Q Ratios

expt.	M/Q ratio	yield (%)	Mn	Mw	ĐM
PolyTEOS (HOAc/OEt 1.2:12)
1	0.68	98.82	2387	7682	3.2183
2	0.80	97.14	2338	4051	1.9423
3	0.85	94.44	2205	3710	1.6825
4	0.90	94.06	2229	3596	1.6133
5	0.95	92.12	2081	3113	1.4959
6	1.00	93.82	1855	2634	1.4199

The process showed excellent batch-to-batch reproducibility and consistency. Repetitions using sulfuric acid as the catalyst led to MQ resins with consistent yields and with almost the same molecular weight and ĐM (Table ).

Table 9

Consistency of MQ Resin Production

expt.	yield (%)	Mna	Mwa	ĐMa
TEOS (M/Q 0.68; HOAc/OEt 0.75)
1	92.5	3230	6370	1.97
2	94.8	2823	5208	1.85
3	93.7	3827	7931	2.07

The standard deviation of the dispersities (n = 3) was 0.11.

One common manifestation of the differences in MQ resins is their ability of adding tack to polymer elastomers or gels.[12] A comparison with a commercial MQ resin showed distinct differences in tack provided at the same loading (Table ).

Table 10

Effect of MQ Resin on the Tack of an MQ-Filled Elastomer

MQ resin	this work				803a
wt %	0	10	20	58	10	20	58
tackb		#8	#11	#26	#4	#6	#15

Wacker #803.

Ball dimensions #4: 3.175; #8: 6.350; #15: 11.906; #26 20.638 mm.

Discussion

The Fischer esterification of an alcohol with a carboxylic acid is a time-honored, reliable route to esters (Figure A). The efficiency of the process relies on a strong acid catalyst and a mechanism to distort the equilibrium to favor products. The use of excess alcohol or carboxylic acid can satisfy the latter requirement, but of course dehydration by distillation or by physical means has an analogous effect.

Slow release and consumption of water in situ are key to the efficient MQ resin synthesis observed (Figure B–F). Acid-catalyzed hydrolysis of alkoxysilanes produces a silanol and alcohol (Figure C); silanols are also formed from hydrolysis of Me3SiOSiMe3 (Figure B). Acid-catalyzed condensation of two silanols leads to disiloxanes and water (Figure E,F). The overall cascade progress is precisely controlled by the rate of liberation of water in situ.

It is noted that silicone polymers can be formed by redistribution polymerization under acidic conditions with MM and D4 ((Me2SiO)4). The redistribution process favors (more basic) M end groups compared to D units (Me2SiO). As a consequence, slow growth in molecular weight occurs as D units are inserted into the growing M-capped silicone chain (Figure A,B).[13] In an analogous process, the hydrolysis and condensation of tetraalkoxysilanes lead initially to linear silica fibrils that, at high conversion, condense to form loose silica networks (Figure C–E);[14] by contrast, under basic conditions, highly reticulated 3D structures form.[15,16]

Figure 8

Acid-catalyzed siloxane insertion reactions.

We speculate that the formation of MQ resins using esterification follows analogous pathways. That is, Q units derived from TEOS slowly undergo hydrolysis and insertion into an M-rich structure, such that relatively low Mw, mostly linear oligomers are formed. A speculative model compound 1 is proposed in Figure F,G. Such a process would account for the narrow dispersity observed in the product; because little water is present at any given time, evolving products will have a relatively low concentration of SiOH groups remained (as shown by IR; Figure ). This proposal is further supported by the ability of almost completely removing SiOH groups by gentle heating. This is likely the consequence of the condensation of the few free SiOH groups to give compound 2, leading to a bimodal distribution, a mixture of monomers and dimers/trimers/tetramers (Figure J). By contrast, normal hydrolytic processes of alkoxysilanes that generate high SiOH concentrations in the MQ resin products are able to undergo multiple condensations giving higher Mw, broader dispersity MQ resins.

The many methods used to prepare MQ resins typically result in complex mixtures with high dispersity and high alkoxy and/or SiOH content. The described process, which hinges on the slow generation of water provided by esterification to give ester solvents, avoids these problems. In addition, the ester coproduct has commercial value. Almost no waste is generated in this chlorine-free reaction, particularly when compared to traditional reactions, which produce a complex mixture of solvents, acid, salts, and alcohol in wastewater. This alternative is completely greener.

Although this preparative method is still in the early stage of development, with respect to process optimization and also full molecular and property characterizations of the products, it offers many advantages over current processes. The main benefit is the narrower range of mixtures of the products, the ability of tuning the molecular weight in a programmed way, and the low SiOH content, which provides more stable products over time. In addition, the process offers significant environmental benefits and higher atom efficiency.

Conclusions

MQ resins constitute an important class of materials used to broaden the properties and utility of silicone elastomers and gels. The use of a cascade esterification process of acetic acid with alcohols generated from tetraalkoxysilanes (and MM as the capping agent) only very slowly generates water in situ. As a consequence, MQ resins of low dispersity and of low SiOH and SiOR concentrations are produced. The Mw is readily increased by gentle thermal treatment.

Experimental Section

Materials

Tetraethoxysilane (tetraethyl orthosilicate, TEOS, >99%) and ethyl polysilicate (PolyTEOS) (>99%) were obtained from Guibao Technology; ferric chloride (FeCl3) (≥97.0%) was from Sinopharm Chemical; trimethylchlorosilane (≥98.0%) was from Richjoint Chemical; trifluoromethanesulfonic acid (≥99.5%) was from Shanghai Huiquan Chemicals Co., Ltd.; acetic acid (≥99.5%) was from Richjoint Chemical; sulfuric acid (95.0–98.0%) was from Donghong Chemical; sodium carbonate anhydrous (≥99.8%) and sodium sulfate anhydrous (≥99.0%) were from Tianjin Zhiyuan Chemical; sulfonic acid cationic-exchange resin (0.79 mequiv/g Product Nankai 001 × 7) was from Tianjin Bohong Resin Company; and hexamethyldisiloxane (MM, >99%) and MQ Resin #803 were from Wacker. All chemicals were used as received unless otherwise stated. Deionized water was treated prepared using a reverse osmosis iron-exchange membrane (Polyamide Material, model: BW30HRLW-4040) from Dow Chemical.

Methods

Infrared spectra were recorded on Bruker Tensor 27 Fourier transform infrared spectrometer.

Molecular weight and polymer dispersity (ĐM) were measured by gel permeation chromatography on Agilent 1260 GPC with an Agilent G1362RI detector and a PLgel 5 μm MIXED-D column. The column was packed with a styrene-divinylbenzene gel, and the samples were run in toluene with polystyrene (PS) as standard.

Gas chromatography was conducted on a GC 9890A from Shanghai Linghua Instrument Co., Ltd. using an SE-54 capillary column (30 m × 0.32 mm × 0. 5 μm), a column temperature of 50 °C, an injector temperature of 145 °C, and an injection volume of 0.1 μL.

Elastomer samples containing MQ resins were prepared by taking the MQ resin (Table ) in petroleum ether at a ratio of 1:3 and then mixing part A: telechelic vinyl–dimethylsiloxane (42 parts) and platinum catalyst (0.05 parts, the MQ resin; Table ). The solvents were removed at reduced pressure and then part B: SiH fluid (7 parts) was added and the reaction was mixed. A 2 mm thick slab was cured at 120 °C for 10 min.

Tack of MQ-filled elastomers was tested according to the Chinese standard GB/T 4852-2002 Test method for tack of pressure sensitive tapes by rolling ball using a Tack tester model: BLD-1007 Dongguan Bo Laide Equipment Co., Ltd. A slab of cured elastomer containing MQ resin (see Table and details below) of dimensions 2 mm thick × 40 mm wide × 100 mm long was placed on the test bed (angled at 30°). Selected stainless steel balls of different diameters were allowed to accelerate along 100 mm of the rigid resin before contacting the elastomer film. The traveling distance from the first contact with the elastomer until the ball stopped moving was recorded.[17]

Synthesis of MQ Silicone Resins by Hydrolysis: PolyTEOS

A general procedure is described for an M/Q ratio of 1:1. A mixture of polyTEOS (152.00 g, 1.0 mol), hexamethyldisiloxane (81.00 g, 0.50 mol), ethanol (15.00 g, 0.33 mol), toluene (56.4 g, 0.61 mol), and an acidic catalyst (36.5 wt % hydrochloric acid (6.33 g, 63 mmol)) was employed in a 1 L round-bottomed flask. Water (54.00 g, 3.0 mol) was slowly added dropwise with stirring over 90 min and then the mixture was heated to reflux (76 °C) for 4 h. After cooling to room temperature, the mixture was allowed to stand to obtain a silanol-rich toluene solution. Potassium hydroxide (0.26 g, 4.64 mmol) was added and the mixture was refluxed for 3 h; a small amount of 36.5 wt % hydrochloric acid was required to return the mixture to neutrality; residual ethanol and water were removed by distillation under vacuum (6.0 kPa) and dried with anhydrous sodium sulfate. After filtration, the solvent was removed from the MQ siloxane resin by vacuum distillation, leaving a white MQ siloxane resin powder (Table ).

Synthesis of MQ Siloxane Resins by Cascade Esterification: TEOS

Influence of Strong Acid Catalysts on the Esterification Reaction: TEOS

A comparison was made of several potential acid catalysts for the esterification reaction starting from TEOS. The general procedure described below was followed, with the exception of the specific strong acid catalyst used (HOAc/TEOS mole ratio 4.4, M unit/Q unit mole feed ratio 0.8, catalyst amount 3.0 wt % based on TEOS; Tables and 4). Reaction temperature curves (Figure ) and molecular weight distributions of the samples by GPC were recorded (Figure ).

The general procedure is described for the sulfuric acid catalyst. TEOS (104 g, 0.5 mol), hexamethyldisiloxane (32.4 g, 0.2 mol), and acetic acid (132 g, 2.2 mol) were added to a 1 L three-neck round-bottomed flask equipped with high-speed mechanical stirring, a condensing reflux tube, and a thermometer. The mixture was warmed to 30 °C with stirring. The acidic catalyst, 98 wt % H2SO4 (3.18 g, 31.8 mmol), was added dropwise and the reaction mixture was stirred for 1 h without external heating. Then, the mixture was heated to 78 °C (reflux temperature for ethyl acetate) for 4 h. A Na2CO3 aqueous solution (12.0%, 304.72 g) was used to neutralize the mixture after allowing the mixture to cool to room temperature (with stirring); the MQ resin solution was collected by draining away the aqueous layer and then anhydrous sodium sulfate (10.07 g, 0.07 mol) was added to the organic phase to remove water. The resulting transparent, colorless solution was heated under a 6.0 kPa vacuum to remove the generated solvents by distillation and then left at 120 °C for 3 h to give the MQ resin as a solid white powder. When other catalysts were used, there was a distinct difference in the observed exotherms (Figure ).

It can be seen (Table ) that the efficiency of the reaction was high except for ferric chloride. The catalyst used affected the dispersity of the product. Me3SiCl and ferric chloride led to broad dispersities, sulfuric acid and acetyl chloride led to bimodal distributions, whereas triflic acid led cleanly to a unimodal distribution of low ĐM (Table ). Sulfuric acid was chosen for further studies.

Effect of Catalyst Dosage (98% Concentrated Sulfuric Acid): TEOS

The general procedure for an M/Q ratio = 0.80, HOAc/OEt ratio = 1.1:1, 80 °C × 4 h is described. A mixture of TEOS (26.0 g, 0.125 mol), hexamethyldisiloxane (8.1 g, 0.05 mol), HOAc (33.0 mL, 0.55 mol), and 98% H2SO4 was added into a 250 mL round-bottomed flask. The reaction mixture was stirred at 30 °C for 60 min and then heated to 78 °C and allowed to react for 4 h. Each vessel was quenched with Na2CO3 aqueous solution (15.0 wt %, to pH = 7) after the reaction had cooled to room temperature. The MQ resin solution was collected by draining away the aqueous layer and then anhydrous sodium sulfate was added to the organic phase to remove water. The resulting transparent, colorless solution was heated under a 6.0 kPa vacuum to remove the generated solvents by distillation. The MQ resin solution in the organic phase was heated at 80 °C at 6.0 kPa for 3 h (Table ).

Effect of Silicon Starting Material on Transesterification Product Characteristics: TEOS vs PolyTEOS

Analogous recipes were used to compare any differences in the MQ resins produced from TEOS or polyTEOS. As can be seen in Table , both polysilicate and TEOS produced similar primary resins under transesterification conditions.

TEOS (52.00 g, 0.25 mol); MM (16.20 g, 0.1 mol); HOAc (66.00 g, 1.1 mol); H2SO4 (98%, 0.53 g, 5.3 mmol); 15% Na2CO3 (aq) (109.75 g); Na2SO4 (5.17 g); yield 93.2%.

PolyTEOS (37.50 g, 0.25 mol); MM (16.20 g, 0.1 mol); HOAc (33.00 g, 0.55 mol); H2SO4 (98%, 0.38 g, 3.8 mmol); 15% Na2CO3 (aq) (40.98 g); Na2SO4 (3.51); yield 96.5%.

Effect of Drying Time on Product Characteristics: PolyTEOS (M/Q 0.8; HOAc/OEt 1.1:1)

PolyTEOS (225.00 g, 1.5 mol), MM (97.20 g, 0.6 mol), acetic acid (198.00 g, 3.3 mol), and sulfuric acid (3.31 g, 33.1 mmol) were used to establish whether removal of solvent played an important role in the final product structure. Eight thermal protocols were utilized, all of which involved drying under a vacuum of 6.0 kPa (Table ). The samples were characterized by IR and GPC (Figures and 7). Figure demonstrates that the higher temperature process leads to materials that have, essentially completely, lost the SiOH groups, as shown by the loss of signal between 3100 and 3700 cm–1 in the infrared spectrum. This is consistent both with loss of water or residual alcohols and with silanol condensation processes.

Effect of Reaction Time on Product Characteristics: PolyTEOS

M/Q ratio = 0.80, HOAc/OEt ratio = 1.1:1 (polyTEOS (225.00 g, 1.5 mol), MM (97.20 g, 0.6 mol), acetic acid (198.00 g, 3.3 mol), and sulfuric acid (3.29 g, 32.9 mmol)). The reactants were allowed to mix, which generated an exotherm in the case of sulfuric acid catalysis (Figure ). After 60 min, heating was started; reflux of EtOAc occurred at 78 °C; reactions were allowed to proceed for an additional 1–5 h (t = 0 was designated as the onset of reflux). After cooling, the resulting mixture was neutralized with sodium carbonate aqueous solution (15.0 wt %, 326 mL). The MQ resin solution was collected by draining away the aqueous layer. After drying the organic phase over anhydrous sodium sulfate (51 g, 0.36 mol), the solution was filtered and solvents were removed with heating under reduced pressure (6.0 kPa) and then heated at elevated temperature. The resulting filtrate was dried at 150 °C under vacuum (6.0 kPa) to give the white power (Table ). The Mn did not substantially change over time, and there was a narrowing of the dispersity (ĐM) over time.

Capping Agent (MM) Residues in the Products: PolyTEOS

GC analyses of the products were performed to establish whether residues of the reaction had been removed. As shown in Figure , no evidence of the capping agent (MM) or ethyl acetate could be detected in the product.

Effect of M/Q Ratio on MQ Siloxane Resin Characteristics: PolyTEOS

The general procedure is described for a M/Q ratio of 1:1. A mixture of polyTEOS (152.00 g, 1.0 mol), MM (81.00 g, 0.5 mol), acetic acid (144.00 g, 2.4 mol), and sulfuric acid (4.71 g, 47 mmol) was stirred for 1 h without external heating in a 1 L three-neck round-bottomed flask equipped with strong stirring, a condensing reflux tube, and a thermometer. The reaction mixture was heated at 78 °C (reflux temperature of EtOAc) for 4 h. After cooling, the resulting mixture was neutralized with sodium carbonate aqueous solution (15.0 wt %, 261.97 mL); the MQ resin solution was collected by draining away the aqueous layer. After drying the organic phase over anhydrous sodium sulfate (18.75 g, 0.13 mol), the solution was filtered and solvents were removed with heating under reduced pressure (6.0 kPa) and then heated at elevated temperature (150 °C) for 3 h to obtain the MQ siloxane resin (Table ).

Note: polyTEOS is partly hydrolyzed TEOS that (upon drying) leads to 40 wt % SiO2. Assuming the other 60% is ethanol, the nominal structure of the material is (HO)2Si(OEt)2 with an Mw of 152.

Batch Consistency: TEOS

Three repetitions of an identical reaction were made to examine batch consistency following the general procedure (Introduction section) described above: TEOS (6.24 g, 0.03 mol), hexamethyldisiloxane (1.65 g, 10.2 mmol), HOAc (5.26 mL, 0.092 mol), and 98% H2SO4 (33.9 μL, 62.4 mg, 0.64 mmol) were mixed in a 15 mL glass bottle. The solution was separated into three aliquots, in round-bottomed flasks of 4.4263, 4.4176, and 4.3240 g. Following three freeze–pump–thaw cycles to replace air with nitrogen, the reaction was stirred at 30 °C for 30 min, heated to 80 °C, and reacted for 4 h (in the same oil bath at the same time). Each vessel was quenched with Na2CO3 aqueous solution (20 wt %, 2.0 mL) after it cooled to room temperature. The MQ resin solution was collected by draining away the aqueous layer and then anhydrous sodium sulfate (10.07 g, 0.07 mol) was added to the organic phase to remove water. The resulting transparent, colorless solution was heated under a 6.0 kPa vacuum to remove the generated solvents by distillation. The MQ resin solutions in the organic phase were heated at 70 °C at 20 mmHg until a constant mass was reached. The obtained MQ resin was characterized by GPC (see Table ).