Insights into the oxidation chemistry of SiOC ceramics derived from silsesquioxanes

We have undertaken a systematic study of the oxidation chemistry for a range of SiOC ceramics derived from silsesquioxane polymeric precursors. This study examines the oxidation for 500 hours at 600, 800, 1000 and 1200 degrees C for four SiOC powders. The material changes upon oxidation were characterized qualitatively by color change and optical microscopy and quantitatively by weight and composition change. In this study we employ a very easy method that uses the weight change upon oxidation and a carbon analysis after oxidation to arrive at the composition of the oxidized SiOC. Combined these qualitative and quantitative techniques have shown that on oxidation at 800 and 600 degrees C the SiOC composition is more rapidly changed to that of silica than oxidation over the same time frame at 1000 or 1200 degrees C. The data indicates that this difference is due to the relative rates of oxidation of the excess carbon versus the Si-C bonds in the SiOC. At lower temperatures initially the carbon oxidation predominates which leads to higher porosity throughout the material and an increase in the surface area with eventually 'complete' oxidation to silica. At higher temperatures the Si-C bond oxidation rate is comparable to the rate of oxidation of carbon. This allows a silica-like surface to build up on the SiOC, which slows all subsequent reactions due to the necessity to diffuse O-2 in and COx out of the bulk. Under these oxidation conditions materials that originally contain high amounts of excess carbon are more quickly oxidized to silica than those that contain minimal amounts of excess carbon, as confirmed by elemental analysis and optical microscopy. Regardless of the time or temperature of the oxidation conditions no materials were found to be completely stable to oxidation. SiOC materials with low levels of excess carbon showed the best resistance to change upon oxidation.