Ultraviolet high-transmitting cross-linked polymer materials derived from mercaptopropyl polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane

In this paper, several cross-linked polymer materials with high light-transmitting properties are presented. First, mercaptopropyl polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS-SH) was synthesized via the hydrolytic condensation of 3-mercaptopropyl triethoxysilane. Then, glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) and allylmethacrylate were allowed to polymerize with POSS-SH, yielding a hybridized composite. The volumetric shrinkage, thermal, and light-transmitting properties of the materials were studied and investigated using a pycnometer, differential scanning calorimeter, and ultraviolet visible spectrophotometer. The results indicated that POSS-SH decreased the volumetric shrinkage of the GMA-based materials. Thermal analysis indicated that the glass transition temperature ( ) of the hybrid composite decreased as the POSS-SH content increased, while the and of the hybrid composite increased slightly. The light transmittance of the hybrid composite increased as the POSS-SH content increased. When the POSS-SH content increased to 42.9%, the hybrid composite exhibited average light transmittance values of 96% at wavelengths ranging from 200 to 400 nm and 97% at wavelengths ranging from 400 to 800 nm.