Molecular Aggregation Strategy for Pore Generation in SiOC Ceramics Induced by the Conjugation Force of Phenyl

Porous silicon oxycarbide (SiOC) ceramics with tailorable microstructure and porosity were fabricated using phenyl-substituted cyclosiloxane (C-Ph) as a molecular-scale porogen are analyzed in this study. A gelated precursor was synthesized via the hydrosilylation of hydrogenated and vinyl-functionalized cyclosiloxanes (CSOs), followed by pyrolysis at 800-1400 °C in flowing N₂ gas. Tailored morphologies, such as closed-pore and particle-packing structures, with porosities in the range 20.2-68.2% were achieved by utilizing the high boiling point of C-Ph and the molecular aggregation in the precursor gel induced by the conjugation force of phenyl. Moreover, some of the C-Ph participated in pyrolysis as a carbon source, which was confirmed by the carbon content and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) data. This was further confirmed by the presence of graphite crystals derived from C-Ph, as determined by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). In addition, the proportion of C-Ph involved in the ceramic process and its mechanism were investigated. The molecular aggregation strategy for phase separation was demonstrated to be facile and efficient, which may promote further research on porous materials. Moreover, the obtained low thermal conductivity of 27.4 mW m^-1 K^-1 may contribute to the development of thermal insulation materials.