Properties and microstructure of silica glass incorporated with tributyl phosphate by sol–gel method

An organic phosphate species tributyl phosphate (TBP) was incorporated into sol–gel-derived glass matrix. TBP could be directly added to the hydrolyzed silica source from tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) and immobilized in silica glass matrix. TBP was stably immobilized in silica glass matrix even in the case where the weight ratio of TBP to silica was unity, and where the volume fraction of the glass sample occupied by TBP moiety was as large as 69%. The glass sample showed an appearance of hard glassy solid even at such a large fraction of TBP which is an organic solvent in the neat state at room temperature. The FT-IR spectrum showed that TBP was immobilized in silica glass in an intact state without chemical bonding with the siloxane network. The Vickers hardness was large enough even at higher weight ratios of TBP to silica to be measured as data indicating that the immobilized TBP molecules could play a promotive role in forming the siloxane bonding. The wide-angle X-ray scattering experiments revealed that the siloxane bonding was expanded by TBP molecules entrapped in the siloxane network. Furthermore, TBP molecules are dispersed in the siloxane network in the molecular scale.