Published online by Cambridge University Press: 25 February 2011
Silicon-29 NMR spectroscopy has been widely applied to characterize the development of molecular complexity of silicon alkoxide sols. In the present study, the progression of molecular complexity of partially hydro-lyzed/condensed tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) sols with increasing H2O/TEOS ratio is demonstrated by the study of a carefully prepared set of solutions. Intriguing trends in the 29si NMR spectra of increasingly hydro-lyzed sols are discussed. In an set of samples, TEOS is replaced in part by tetraethoxytitane, Ti(OEt)4 (TEOT). The effects on the 29Si NMR spectrum due to the presence of TEOT are presented and interpreted in terms of changes in the distribution of siloxane monomers and oligomers in solution. Preliminary data on the stability of these solutions with time are reported.