Process for the manufacture of a one-component room-temperature vulcanizable silicone composition

Claim 2

A process for the preparation of a fluid composition that is stable under substantially anhydrous conditions and curable to a self-bonding elastic solid in the presence of moisture, said process comprising passing 100 parts by weight of a silanol chain stopped polydiorganosiloxane of the formula: ##EQU7## wherein R and R 1 are each, independently, organic radicals of up to 8 carbon atoms selected from hydrocarbyl, halohydrocarbyl and cyano lower alkyl and n is an average number of from about 10 to 15,000, from 0.01 to 5.0 parts by weight of a crosslinking silane of the formula: R.sub.m.sup.2 Si (OR.sup.3).sub.4-m wherein R 2 and R 3 have the values defined for R and R 1 hereinabove and m has a value of 0 to 3 and an average value based on the total amount of silane in the composition of 0 to 1.99, and a silanol reactive organometallic ester compound of a metal, said compound having radicals attached to the metal atom, at least one of said radicals being a hydrocarbonoxy radical or a substituted hydrocarbonoxy radical, said radicals being attached to the metal atoms through M--O--C linkages wherein M is the metal and any remaining valences of the metal are satisfied by substituents selected from organic radicals which are attached to the metal atom through M--O--C linkages, --OH and --O-- of a M--O--M linkage, the weight ratio of the silanol reactive organometallic ester compound to the cross-linking silane always being at least unity, through a devolatilizing extruder to form a vulcanizable fluid composition that is curable to a self-bonding elastic solid in the presence of moisture.

Claim 3

The process of claim 1 wherein a filler is combined with the preblend of (a) and the silanol reactive organometallic ester compound prior to extrusion.

Claim 4

The process of claim 2 wherein the total number of the moles of cross-linking silane is less than the total of the number of moles of the terminal silanol groups in the polydiorganosiloxane.

Claim 5

The process of claim 2 wherein the total of the number of moles of silanol reactive ester linkages in the organometallic ester compound is equal to or greater than the total of the number of moles of terminal silanol groups in the polydiorganosiloxane component.

Claim 6

A process as defined in claim 3 wherein the total of the number of moles of silanol reactive ester linkages in the organometallic ester compound is equal to or greater than the total of the number of moles of terminal silanol groups in the polydiorganosiloxane component.

Claim 7

A process as defined in claim 1 wherein the weight ratio of the silanol reactive organometallic ester compound of a metal to the cross-linking silane is from 1 to 50.

Claim 8

A process as defined in claim 6 wherein the weight ratio of the silanol reactive organometallic ester compound of a metal to the cross-linking silane is from 1 to 10.

Claim 9

A process as defined in claim 7 wherein the weight ratio of the silanol reactive organometallic ester compound of a metal to the cross-linking silane is from 1 to 5.

Claim 10

A process as defined in claim 1 wherein the viscosity of the silanol chain-stopped polydiorganosiloxane is within the range of 2,000 to 1,000,000 cps. at 25°C.

Claim 11

A process as defined in claim 9 wherein the viscosity of the silanol chain-stopped polydiorganosiloxane is within the range of 20,000 to 200,000 cps at 25°C.

Claim 12

A process as defined in claim 1 wherein, in the silanol chain-stopped polydiorganosiloxane is at least 50% of the total number of R and R 1 groups are alkyl radicals and any remaining groups are aryl radicals.

Claim 13

A process as defined in claim 11 wherein the alkyl radicals are methyl radicals and any remaining aryl radicals are phenyl radicals.

Claim 14

A process as defined in claim 1 wherein, in the cross-linking silane, at least 50% of the total number of R 2 and R 3 groups are alkyl radicals and any remaining groups are aryl radicals and m is 1.

Claim 15

A process as defined in claim 1 wherein the alkyl radicals are methyl radicals and any remaining aryl radicals are phenyl radicals.

Claim 16

A process as defined in claim 1 wherein, in said organometallic ester component, the metal M is selected from lead, tin, zirconium, antimony, iron, cadmium, barium, calcium, titanium, bismuth, manganese, zinc, chromium, cobalt, nickel, aluminum, gallium or germanium.

Claim 17

A process as defined in claim 15 wherein the organometallic ester component is an orthoester of a lower aliphatic alcohol, a partially chelated ester of a lower aliphatic alcohol with a β-dicarbonyl compound or a partial hydrolyzate of such compounds which retain at least one hydrocarbonoxy radical or substituted hydrocarbonoxy radical attached to the metal atom through M--O--C linkages.

Claim 18

A process as defined in claim 15 wherein in said organometallic ester component, the metal M is titanium.

Claim 19

A process as defined in claim 1 wherein from about 10 to about 200 parts by weight of a filler or fillers per 100 parts of the silanol chain stopped polydiorganosiloxane are fed as a separate stream or streams to the devolatilizing extruder.

Claim 20

A process as defined in claim 18 wherein said fillers are selected from the group consisting of calcium carbonate, fumed silica and mixtures thereof.

Claim 21

A process as defined in claim 16 wherein said organometallic ester component is a titanium chelate catalyst of the formula: ##EQU8## or ##EQU9## wherein R 4 is hydrogen, or an organic radical of up to 8 carbon atoms selected from hydrocarbyl, halohydrocarbyl, or carboxyalkyl; R 5 is a radical of up to 8 carbon atoms selected from hydrocarbyl, halohydrocarbyl and cyano-lower alkyl; R 6 is selected from same group as R 4 and in addition from halo, cyano, nitro, carboxy ester, or acyl and hydrocarbyl substituted by halo, cyano, nitro, carboxy ester and acyl, the total number of carbon atoms in the R 4 and in the R 6 substituted alkanedioxy radical being not more than about 18; R 7 is selected from hydrogen or an organic radical of up to 8 carbon atoms selected from hydrocarbyl, halohydrocarbyl, or acyl and, when taken together with R 5 forms together with the carbon atoms to which they are attached a cyclic hydrocarbon substituent of up to about 12 carbon atoms or such a substituent substituted with one or more of a chloro, nitro, acyl, cyano or carboxy ester sustituents; X is a radical of up to 20 carbon atoms selected from hydrocarbyl, halohydrocarbyl, cyanoalkyl, alkoxy, haloalkoxy, cyanoalkoxy, amino or ether and polyether groups of the formula -- (C q H 2q O) v R where q is from 2 to 4, v is from 1 to 20 and R is an organic radical of up to 8 carbon atoms selected from hydrocarbyl, halohydrocarbyl or cyano lower alkyl, a is O or an interger of up to 8 and, when a is O, the >C -- R 2 4 groups are bonded to each other in a cyclic fashion, and R 8 is a radical of up to 8 carbon atoms selected from hydrocarbyl, halohydrocarbyl or cyano-lower alkyl.

Claim 22

A process as defined in claim 20 wherein said organometallic ester component is of the formula: ##EQU10##

Claim 23

A process as defined in claim 20 wherein, in the cross-linking silane, R 2 and R 3 are alkyl and, in the organometallic ester component, R 4 and R 6 are hydrogen and R 5 is alkyl.

Claim 24

A process as defined in claim 20 wherein, in the cross-linking silane, R 2 and R 3 are methyl, and in the organometallic ester component, R 5 is methyl, X is OC 15 H 31 , and a is 1.

Claim 25

A process as defined in claim 23 wherein, in the organometallic ester component, R 4 and R 6 are each hydrogen.

Claim 26

A process as defined in claim 22 wherein, in the cross-linking silane, R 2 and R 3 are methyl and, in the organometallic ester component, R 5 and X are methyl and R 4 and R 6 are hydrogen.

Claim 27

A process as defined in claim 20 wherein the polydiorganosiloxane is ##EQU11## wherein n is from about 300 to about 5,260; the cross-linking silane is (CH 3 )Si(OCH 3 ) 3 ; and the organometallic ester component is ##EQU12##

Claim 28

A process as defined in claim 20 wherein the polydiorganosiloxane is ##EQU13## wherein n is from about 370 to about 1,350; the cross-linking silane is CH 3 Si(OCH 3 ) 3 ; and the organometallic ester component is ##EQU14##

Claim 29

A process as defined in claim 20 wherein, in the organometallic ester component, a is 0 or 1 and R 4 and R 6 are hydrogen or methyl.