Fabrication of covalently-bonded polystyrene/SiO₂ composites by Pickering emulsion polymerization

Pickering emulsion polymerization has attracted considerable attention in material fabrication due to its unique surfactant-free character and versatile association of oil, water and particles for a large set of materials. In this study, SiO₂ modified with Methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane (MPTMS) was employed to prepare Pickering emulsion, and subsequently covalently-bonded polystyrene/SiO₂(PS/SiO₂) composites were synthesized by Oil-in-water Pickering emulsion polymerization. Optical micrograph, contact angle, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier transform infrared spectra (FT-IR), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and dynamic laser scattering (DLS) were employed to characterize the modified SiO₂, Pickering emulsion and prepared composites. It was found that prepared composites possess ragged surface morphology and SiO₂ concentration has an important effect on the morphology of as-prepared composites. In addition, covalent bond between PS core and SiO₂ shell was evidenced by FT-IR.