Preparation and Thermal Stability of Polyimide-titania Hybrids

Polyimide-titania hybrid materials have been prepared from polyamic acid (PAA) solution and titanium IV isopropoxide by the sol-gel process. Up to 15 wt.% of Ti02 has been incorporated into the polyimide matrix; SEM, AFM and TEM results indicate that the Ti02 is distributed with an average particle size ranging from 0 to 130 nm. The hybrid materials exhibit good thermal stability with char yields in N2 being higher for the samples containing Ti02, compared with pure PI.