Thermal and gas permeation properties of copolymers derived from 3-methacryloxypropyltris(trimethylsiloxy)silane and adamantyl group-containing methacrylate derivatives

ABSTRACT Novel copolymer membranes derived from three types of adamantyl group‐containing methacrylate derivatives and 3‐methacryloxypropyltris(trimethylsiloxy)silane (SiMA) were synthesized via free radical polymerization. The thermal and permeation properties of these copolymer membranes were investigated. Copolymer membranes with less than 11.9 mol % adamantane content exhibited good membrane forming abilities that are suitable for permeation measurement. The decomposition temperature of all copolymers increased up to approximately 40–80°C with increasing adamantane content compared with poly(SiMA). Moreover, the glass transition temperature (Tg) of all copolymers increased up to approximately 46–60°C with increasing adamantane content compared with the theoretical value, which was estimated from Fox equation. 1‐Adamantyl methacrylate copolymer had the highest fractional free volume among the three types of adamantly group‐containing methacrylate derivatives. The gas permeability coefficient of this copolymer increased by 22–45% with increasing adamantane content compared with that of poly(SiMA). © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016, 133, 43129.