Book description
An Introduction to the CHEMISTRY of the SILICONES By EUGENE G. ROCHOW.
PREFACE: The organic compounds of silicon, which have been the subject
of many scholarly researches during the past 80 years, at last show
promise of emerging from the laboratory and finding a place in industry.
An understanding of the behavior of organosilicon materials is necessary
to their intelligent use and, inasmuch as the chemistry of these
substances ordinarily is not treated in our textbooks, it is possible
that a compact yet comprehensive survey of our present knowledge in this
field would be of service to chemists, engineers, and industrial
designers. This volume has just such a purpose. The first few chapters
review the silanes and their derivatives in some detail, in order to
provide an understanding of the fundamental chemistry of the nonsilicate
com pounds of silicon. The later chapters emphasize the silicone
polymers which have achieved commercial importance and deal with the
methods for their preparation, their chemical and physical properties,
and their possible usas. The processes available for large-scale
production are treated separately, and a review of methods of analysis
is included. In order not to burden the text with definitions and
explanations of nomenclature which might already be familiar to some
readers, an extensive glossary of terms is appended. An exhaustive
review of the literature on organic compounds of sili con cannot very
well be included in a volume intended for the non specialist. However,
many references are provided, and tables of most of the known compounds
and their properties are included in the appropriate chapters. The
reader will find comprehensive reviews of publications in Friends
Textbook of Inorganic Chemistry, Volume 11, Part 2 Krause and von
Grossed Chemie der Metallorgamschen Ver bindungen, Dolgows Chemistry of
the Silica-Organic Compounds, and Bygdens Silizium als Vertreter des
Kohlenstoffs organischen Verbindun gen. A more recent and more complete
compilation of the literature on organic compounds of silicon would be
welcomed by every investigator in the field. Since this work presents a
point of view rather than an uncritical compilation of published fact,
the author must assume entire responsi bility for the opinions
expressed. However, he is greatly indebted to his coworkers iu the
research laboratory of the General Electriq Company for helpful advice
and criticisms. In a larger sense this work is the result of many years
of common endeavor in a most interesting field of research. Contents
include: 1. THE SIMPLE COVALENT COMPOUNDS OF SILICON 1 Introduction 1
Chemical Behavior of the Element 3 The Hydrides 4 The Halides 9 The
Esters or Ethers 12 Index of Representative Compounds 16 2. THE
ORGANOSILICON MONOMERS 18 Methods for Carbon-Silicon Bonds 19 The Alkyls
30 The Alkylsilanes 32 The Alkylhalosilanes 33 The Alkylalkoxysilanes 37
Index of Representative Compounds 39 3. TYPES OF ORGANOSI LICON POLYMERS
45 Silicon Chains 45 Silicon-Carbon Chains 46 Siloxane Chains 49
Siloxane Networks 53 Index of Representative Compounds 58 4. PROPERTIES
OF THE SPECIFIC SILICONS POLYMERS 60 Alkyl Silicones 62 Methyl Silicone
Oil 64 Methyl Silicone Resins 70 Silicone Rubber 72 Ethyl Silicone
Resins 73 Other Alkyl Silicone Resins 74 Aryl Silicones 77 Alkyl-Aryl
Silicones 80 5. WATER-REPELLENT FILMS FROM ORGANOSILICON MATERIALS 83
Reaction of Methylchlorosilanes 83 Uses 85 6. TECHNICAL ASPECTS OF
SILICONES 89 The Intermediates 90 The Grignard Method 91 The Direct
Method 96 Processing 101 Toxicity 103 Future Expansion 104 ix
