TY - JOUR A1 - Wohlrab, Sebastian A1 - Schönhals, Andreas A1 - Goering, Harald A1 - Friedrich, Jörg Florian T1 - Integration of sol-gel derived inorganic nanonetworks into polymers JF - Polymer chemistry N2 - Nanoparticulate networks as fillers for polymer based nanocomposites offer an optimized, surfactant free distribution of the inorganic component. Additionally, their non-aggregated but interconnected nanoparticulate subunits can lead to new properties owing to special inherent solid state properties and/or spacial restrictions to the polymeric parts. In particular, polymer nanocomposites based on poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) or poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA), filled with different nanoparticulate networks of AlOOH were synthesized using two advanced synthesis techniques. An ex situ method, in which a preformed AlOOH-gel was solvent exchanged by methyl methacrylate (MMA) and an in situ method, in which the AlOOH scaffold was prepared within hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA), have been used to produce the materials described here through polymerization. On the MMA based composites the particles were removed by etching, yielding porous polymers. Promising for a broad variety of crystallisable networks within polymers, the phase transition of amorphous AlOOH within PMMA towards crystalline boehmite was performed using a hydrothermal method. The materials were characterized using transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, gel permeation chromatography, differential scanning calorimetry, IR-spectroscopy, UV/Vis spectroscopy and hardness measurements. Special material properties were investigated using thermogravimetry, thermomechanical analysis and dynamic mechanical analysis. Furthermore, interactions between PMMA segments and the AlOOH network were detailed studied using dielectric spectroscopy. PY - 2010 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c0py00105h SN - 1759-9954 SN - 1759-9962 VL - 1 IS - 8 SP - 1226 EP - 1236 AN - OPUS4-21996 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -