Siloxane-PMMA (polymethylmethacrylate) hybrid materials presenting covalent bonds between the organic (polymer) and inorganic (siloxane) phases were prepared by the sol-gel process. The effect of siloxane content on the drying mechanism at 50ºC was investigated by in-situ weight loss and linear shrinkage measurements. The three classical regimes observed during drying of pure inorganic gels were observed. The duration of the first regime (constant rate period, CRP) increases by increasing the quantity of PMMA in the hyibrids, which was attributed to the low average pore diameter observed in these systems. The increase in siloxane content increases the weight loss and linear shrinkage at the end of the drying process due to the high quantity of solvent resulting from condensation reactions of silicon species. It leads to the diminution of the gel stiffness. The porosity of dried hyibrids increases with the siloxane content due to the high weight loss observed during drying.
sol-gel; hybrid; drying
