Improved space survivability of polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) polyimides fabricated via novel POSS-diamine

Abstract Polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) surrounded by two amine groups, namely POSS-diamine, was prepared via hydrolytic co-condensation. POSS polyimide hybrid membranes were subsequently fabricated by co-polymerizing POSS-diamine with imide monomers. Hybrid membranes exhibit significantly improved space survivability. A hybrid membrane with 29.7 wt% POSS loading shows the best atomic oxygen (AO) resistance with the lowest erosion yield of 0.9 × 10 −25  cm 3 ·atom −1 . The enhancement in AO resistance is attributed to the formation of a SiO 2 passivating layer on the membrane surface upon AO exposure. POSS polyimides with desirable AO survivability may find wide usage in aerospace.