Vinyltriethoxysilane is an

organosilicon compound Organosilicon chemistry is the study of organometallic compounds containing carbon–silicon bonds, to which they are called organosilicon compounds. Most organosilicon compounds are similar to the ordinary organic compounds, being colourless, f ...

with the formula (C₂H₅O)₃SiCH=CH₂. It is a colorless liquid. The compound is

bifunctional In chemistry, bifunctionality or difunctionality is the presence of two functional groups in a molecule. A bifunctional species has the properties of each of the two types of functional groups, such as an alcohol (), amide (), aldehyde (), nitrile ...

, featuring both a

vinyl group In organic chemistry, a vinyl group (abbr. Vi; IUPAC name: ethenyl group) is a functional group with the formula . It is the ethylene (IUPAC name: ethene) molecule () with one fewer hydrogen atom. The name is also used for any compound contai ...

and hydrolytically sensitive ethoxysilyl groups. As such it is a crosslinking agent.{{cite journal , doi = 10.5254/1.3538376, title = Chemical Aspects of Rubber Reinforcement by Fillers, journal = Rubber Chemistry and Technology, volume = 69, issue = 3, pages = 325–346, year = 1996, last1 = Wolff, first1 = Siegfried

Applications

Vinyltriethoxysilane and the related vinyltrimethoxysilane are used as

monomer A monomer ( ; ''mono-'', "one" + '' -mer'', "part") is a molecule that can react together with other monomer molecules to form a larger polymer chain or two- or three-dimensional network in a process called polymerization. Classification Chemis ...

s and

comonomer In polymer chemistry, a comonomer refers to a polymerizable precursor to a copolymer aside from the principal monomer. In some cases, only small amounts of a comonomer are employed, in other cases substantial amounts of comonomers are used. Furt ...

for polymers such as

ethylene Ethylene (IUPAC name: ethene) is a hydrocarbon which has the formula or . It is a colourless, flammable gas with a faint "sweet and musky" odour when pure. It is the simplest alkene (a hydrocarbon with carbon–carbon bond, carbon–carbon doub ...

-vinyltrimethoxysilane and ethylene-

vinyl acetate Vinyl acetate is an organic compound with the Chemical formula, formula CH3CO2CH=CH2. This colorless liquid is the precursor to polyvinyl acetate, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymers, polyvinyl alcohol, and other important industrial polymers. Prod ...

-vinyltrimethoxysilane. Vinyltrialkoxysilanes are also used as

cross-link In chemistry and biology, a cross-link is a bond or a short sequence of bonds that links one polymer chain to another. These links may take the form of covalent bonds or ionic bonds and the polymers can be either synthetic polymers or natural ...

ing agents during the manufacture of

cross-linked polyethylene Cross-linked polyethylene, commonly abbreviated PEX, XPE or XLPE, is a form of polyethylene with cross-links. It is used predominantly in building services pipework systems, hydronic radiant heating and cooling systems, domestic water piping, in ...

(PEX). The alkoxysilane moiety is reactive toward water, and in the presence of

moisture Moisture is the presence of a liquid, especially water, often in trace amounts. Moisture is defined as water in the adsorbed or absorbed phase. Small amounts of water may be found, for example, in the air (humidity), in foods, and in some comme ...

, it forms silicon-oxygen-silicon bonds that cross-link the material to cure it. Moisture-curable polymers are used as electrical insulation in some kinds of

cable Cable may refer to: Mechanical * Nautical cable, an assembly of three or more ropes woven against the weave of the ropes, rendering it virtually waterproof * Wire rope, a type of rope that consists of several strands of metal wire laid into a hel ...

s and for water pipe in under-floor heating installations. Vinyltrialkoxysilanes are also used as a coupling agents or adhesion promoters for treatment of glass fibers and particulate minerals in order to form stronger bonds with

resin A resin is a solid or highly viscous liquid that can be converted into a polymer. Resins may be biological or synthetic in origin, but are typically harvested from plants. Resins are mixtures of organic compounds, predominantly terpenes. Commo ...

and produce

fiberglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) is a common type of fibre-reinforced plastic, fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened i ...

with better mechanical properties. Amino-functional silanes such as (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane and epoxy-functional silanes are used for the same purpose. The silane group attaches to the glass substrate via

covalent A covalent bond is a chemical bond that involves the sharing of electrons to form electron pairs between atoms. These electron pairs are known as shared pairs or bonding pairs. The stable balance of attractive and repulsive forces between atom ...

Si-O-Si bond, while the resin reacts with the vinyl-, amino-, or epoxy- group and binds to it.

References

Silyl ethers Monomers Vinyl compounds Ethoxides