Sorption and transport in poly(2,2-bis(trifluoromethyl)-4,5-difluoro-1,3-dioxole-co-tetrafluoroethylene) containing nanoscale fumed silica

The addition of nanoscale, nonporous fumed silica [FS] particles to size-selective poly(2,2-bis(trifluoromethyl)-4,5-difluoro-1,3-dioxole-co-tetrafluoroethylene) [AF2400] systematically increases penetrant permeability coefficients, similar to behavior previously observed in vapor-selective polyacetylenes, but contrary to results in traditional filled polymer systems. Permeability coefficients of large penetrants increase more than those of small molecules in filled AF2400, thereby decreasing the size selectivity of this polymer. AF2400 is readily plasticized by n-butane, whereas AF2400 containing 40 wt % FS exhibits antiplasticization behavior, suggesting that filler addition alters AF2400 to allow n-butane molecules to be accommodated in the polymer without significant swelling and subsequent plasticization of the matrix. Both filled and unfilled AF2400 have essentially the same gas solubility coefficients, so all of the increase in penetrant permeability in filled AF2400 is a result of increased diffusion coefficients. There is reasonable agreement between diffusion coefficients obtained from transient sorption and steady-state data, both of which increase regularly with increasing FS content. Positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy reveals that FS addition increases the size of free volume elements in AF2400. Thermal analysis of filled AF2400 shows that FS has no detectable effect on the polymer's glass transition temperature, indicating that FS has little impact on long-range chain mobility.