Preparation and characterization of silica aerogel/polymethyl methacrylate composites with electrostatic interaction phase interface

Silica aerogel (SA)/polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) composites were prepared through electrostatic interaction, which could form phase interface. The effects of electrostatic interaction phase interface on the performance of the composites were studied. The SA/polymer hybrid composites were prepared because of the negative charges in SA and the positive charges in polymer. Characterizations of the SA, polymer, and composites were performed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmittance, gel permeation chromatography, differential scanning calorimetry, zeta potential, and so on. The results indicated that SA has negative charges, whereas the polymer has positive charges; thus, the polymer was absorbed on the surface of the SA skeleton to form an electrostatic interaction phase interface. The composites achieved better transmittance than that of SA/PMMA with the electrostatic interaction phase interface.