Research of Formal-Kinetic Regularities of the Curing Process of Low-Viscosity Epoxy Binder

Abstract

The expanding range of components intended for manufacturing products of polymer composite materials is often not accompanied by comprehensive information on the characteristics and recommended technological curing modes. The relevance and practical significance of this investigation are based on the need to predict rational technological modes for curing products of polymer composite materials based on the low-viscosity epoxy binder Etal-Inject-SLM, which is in demand in the manufacture of products from polymer composite materials by cold curing. The purpose of this investigation is to determine kinetic patterns, which allow for predicting the time and degree of curing of the low-viscosity epoxy binder Etal-Inject-SLM for various isothermal curing conditions. The method of differential scanning calorimetry was used to measure the thermal effect of the curing reaction of the Etal-Inject-SLM epoxy binder at various heating rates. Based on the experimental calorimetric data and using the model-free (non-prior) Friedman method, using the specialized software Netzsch Kinetics Neo, the parameters characterizing the formal kinetic laws of the curing process were calculated. This allowed for plotting isothermal and iso-conversion thermokinetic diagrams necessary for predicting the time and degree of curing of the Etal-Inject-SLM binder at different temperatures and curing times. This results can be useful for optimizing technological processes in which the low-viscosity epoxy binder Etal-Inject-SLM is used.