Water Absorption and Mechanical Properties of Silica Porous Glasses

We have estimated the mechanical properties of silica porous glasses (SPG) using special two-layered structures consisting of a SPG layer on a solid glass substrate. These structures turned curved after keeping them in moist atmosphere. The linear dimensions of dry free-standing SPG wafers with the same pore size distribution increased significantly (up to 1.5%) after water vapour soaking. Bending angles of two-layered structures and the values of linear expansions were used to estimate SPG elastic constants and the mechanical stresses arising in porous glasses as the result of water absorption.