Pressure–volume–temperature (PVT) equation-of-state (EOS) information for polymers and polymeric composites is valuable for predicting their response to extreme conditions. An obstacle in determining equations of state for polymeric materials is the lack of a simple, static experimental method for acquiring PVT data for solid networks and liquids at pressures greater than several kilobars. Here, we report a novel approach in determining static EOS for polymers using high-pressure diamond-anvil cells coupled with optical microscopy and image analysis. Results are presented for a cross-linked poly(dimethylsiloxane) polymer, SylgardR 184. Static isothermal results were fitted to empirical and semiempirical equations of state, including the Tait, Birch–Murnaghan, and Vinet forms. Static PV data were also converted to pseudoshock velocity–pseudoparticle velocity for comparison to dynamic Hugoniot data. A linear Rankine–Hugoniot fit gives and . is related to the pressure derivative of the bulk modulus by and . A comparison of the static and shock data is given, along with an estimate of the Grüneisen parameter, and a discussion of the free volume content in the polymer network, and limitations of this novel method.
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at pressures corresponding to the Raman data were determined using a Tait equation of state in two pressure regimes. Below 20 kbar, the Tait parameters used to calculate were and . Above 20 kbar, the Tait parameters were fixed at and . 20 kbar was chosen as an approximate value for the end of the crush-up regime in which the free volume from interchain spacing and network structure, is squeezed out, and above which, the material behaves more like a molecular solid.