S1.3. Fabrication of HBPSi-R/EP co-polymer systems
The fabrication of HBPSi-R/EP co-polymer systems employed a facile
thermosetting workflow via casting methods. The resin matrix included a
bisphenol-A diglycidyl ether epoxy resin (DGEBA, E51) and an
anhydride-type curing agent (Methyl tetrahydrophthalic anhydride,
MTHPA). A drop of tertiary amine (Tris(dimethylaminomethyl)phenol,
DMP-30) was used as the curing accelerator. Firstly, 70 g of DGEBA with
different mass fraction of HBPSi-R (3%, 6%, 9%) was pre-polymerized
at 80 °C for 15 min. Since a uniform resin solution of xHBPSi-R/EP was
obtained, where x is the mass fraction of HBPSi-R. 56 g of MTHPA and a
drop of DMP-30 were added and stirred for another 15 min. The
pre-polymer mixture was fully degassed in an 80 oC
vacuum for 30 min and then poured into a pre-heated mold. The curing
process underwent a heating procedure of 120 °C × 2h, 150 °C × 3h and
180 °C × 2h, and then demolding and tailoring for test.