Kinetics and network structure of thermally cured vinyl ester resins

Bisphenol-A diglycidyl ether dimethacrylate was blended with styrene at varying concentrations and this model vinyl ester resin (VER) was compared with two commercial VERs. The VERs were characterized using gravimetry, FTIR spectroscopy, NMR spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and DMTA. NMR spectroscopy differentiated between a novolac epoxy-based multimethacrylate oligomer and the two bisphenol-A epoxy-based dimethacrylate oligomers. Reaction kinetics were studied using scanning and isothermal DSC and isothermal FTIR spectroscopy using benzoyl peroxide as the thermal initiator. The presence of oxygen was found to inhibit significantly the polymerization. Increased initiator concentration raised the rate of isothermal polymerization, but did not affect the final conversion while increased styrene concentration reduced the polymerization rate constant and increased the total conversion. This was interpreted in terms of the variations in the termination rate and the stability of the styryl radical on the cure rate and the effect of vitrification on the extent of cure. From measurements of the dynamic mechanical properties as a function of temperature, the breadth of the glass transition tan δ curve and the magnitude of the rubbery modulus was found to increase while the tan δ maximum decreased with increased crosslink density. The T_g, as measured by DSC, and the temperature of the tan δ maximum, as measured by DMTA, were not significantly affected by the styrene content in the resin per se, but were dependent on the combined effects of composition and crosslink density of the network.     

松香树脂酸乙烯酯的研究 第二报:松香树脂酸乙烯酯组成与结构的研究

本文研究了国产特级松香树脂酸乙烯酯的组成与各级分的分子结构：结果表明国产特级松香树脂酸乙烯酯的主要成分是枞酸乙烯酯、长叶松酸乙烯酯和去氢枞酸乙烯酯，三者间重量比为11：3：2；其连接在羧基上的乙烯基在核磁共振谱图中呈现为很好的ABX系统。     

Hybrid resins from polyisocyanate/vinyl ester/water glass systems: Structure and properties

Polysilicate modified polyurea/vinyl ester hybrid resins were produced by dispersing water glass (WG) in a mixture of vinyl ester (VE) and polyisocyanate in presence of a liquid phosphate as emulsifier. As styrene-crosslinkable VE resins bisphenol A (BA) and novolac types (N), whereas as polyisocyanate a polymeric methylene diphenyl isocyanate (PMDI) were used. The structure and selected properties of the hybrid resins were determined and compared to those of the neat VEs and polysilicate filled polyurea (denoted as 3P resin). Using VE for resin hybridization, which worked as an additional emulsifier for the WG/PMDI/phosphate system, resulted in a fine particle dispersion of the polysilicate. It was found that the type of VE affected not only the dispersion of WG (and thus of the polysilicate) but also the network formation of the polyurea/VE hybrids and their properties. Information about the structure of the polysilicate filled hybrid resins was gained from dynamic-mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA), scanning electron and atomic force microscopic measurements. It was argued that the resin hybridization yielded a conetwork instead of an interpenetrating one. The properties of the hybrid systems were determined by DMTA, fracture mechanical tests, thermogravimetric analysis and flammability measurements. It was established that the stiffness and resistance to thermal degradation of the initial 3P resin was strongly improved by hybridization with VEs. The fracture toughness (K_c) proved to be less sensitive to the formulation of the hybrid resins. On the other hand, the fracture energy (G_c) and limiting oxygen index experienced a positive deviation from the additivity as a function of the 3P/VE composition, at least in a given range.     

Studies on the synthesis and curing of epoxidized novolac vinyl ester resin from renewable resource material

Cardanol-based epoxidized novolac vinyl ester resin (CNEVER) was synthesized by reacting cardanol-based epoxidized novolac (CNE) resin and methacrylic acid (MA) (CNE:MA molar ratio 1:0.9) in presence of triphenylphosphine as catalyst at 90 °C. The CNE resin was prepared by the reaction of cardanol-based novolac-type phenolic (CFN) resin and epichlorohydrin, in basic medium, at 120 °C. The CFN resin was synthesized by reacting cardanol (C) and formaldehyde (F) (C/F ratio = 1:0.7) with p-toluene sulphonic acid (PTSA) as catalyst (0.5 wt.%) at 120 °C for 7 h. The resin products were analyzed by Fourier-transform infra-red (FTIR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopic analysis. The number-average molecular weight of the prepared CNEVER was found to be 859 gmol⁻¹ as determined by gel permeation chromatographic (GPC) analysis. The resin was cured by using the mixture of resin, benzoyl peroxide, and styrene at 120 °C. The CNEVER resin was found to be cured in 60 min at 120 °C. Differential scanning calorimetric (DSC) technique was used to investigate the curing behaviour. Single step mass loss in dynamic thermogravimetric (TG) trace of CNEVER was observed. Thermal stability of the vinyl ester sample containing 40 wt.% styrene was the highest amongst all other prepared systems.     

歧化松香树脂酸乙烯酯组成与结构的研究

本文研究了国产歧化松香乙烯酯的组成与各组分的分子结构，结果表明国产歧化松香乙烯酯的主要成分是二氢枞酸和脱氮枞酸的乙烯酯，二者重量比为3∶4；其乙烯酯上的乙烯基在核磁共振谱图中呈现为很好的ABX系统；因为二氢枞酸有三个异构体，所以仅用光谱方法无法确定二氧枞酸乙烯酯环内双键的位置。     

Effects of temperature on cure kinetics and mechanical properties of vinyl–ester resins

The relationships among cure temperature, chemical kinetics, microstructure, and mechanical performance have been investigated for vinyl–ester resins. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy was used to follow the reactions of vinyl–ester and styrene during isothermal curing of Dow Derakane 411‐C‐50 at 30 and 90°C. Reactivity ratios of vinyl–ester and styrene vinyl groups were evaluated using the copolymer composition equation. The results indicate that the ratio of vinyl–ester to styrene double bonds incorporated into the network is greater for 30 than for 90°C cure. Mechanical properties were obtained for systems subjected to isothermal cures at 30 and 90°C and postcured above ultimate T_g. The results show that the initial cure temperature significantly affects the mechanical behavior of vinyl–ester resin systems. In particular, values of strength and fracture toughness for postcured samples initially cured isothermally at 30°C are significantly higher than those obtained for samples cured isothermally at 90°C. Examination of fracture surfaces using atomic force microscopy revealed the existence of a nodular microstructure possessing characteristic nodule dimensions that are affected by the temperature of cure. Such features suggest the existence of phase separation during cure. A binary interaction model in conjunction with chemical kinetic data and estimated solubility parameters was used to evaluate enthalpic interactions between the growing polymer network and monomers of the vinyl–ester system. The results indicate that the interaction energy becomes increasingly endothermic as cure progresses and that this energy is affected by the temperature of cure through differences in copolymerization behavior. Hence, in addition to entropic factors, the changes in enthalpic contribution to the Gibbs free energy suggest that the probability of phase separation increases with extent of cure and that its onset is potentially affected by cure temperature. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 37: 725–744, 1999     

A statistical approach to characterize the viscoelastic creep compliances of a vinyl ester polymer

The objective of this study was to develop a model to predict the viscoelastic material functions of a vinyl ester (VE) polymer with variations in its experimentally obtained material properties under combined isothermal and mechanical loading. Short-term tensile creep experiments were conducted at three temperatures below the glass transition temperature of the VE polymer, with 10 replicates for each test configuration. The measured creep strain versus time responses were used to determine the creep compliances using the generalized viscoelastic constitutive equation with a Prony series representation. The variation in the creep compliances of a VE polymer was described by formulating the probability density functions (PDFs) and the corresponding cumulative distribution functions (CDFs) of the creep compliances using a two-parameter Weibull distribution. Both Weibull scale and shape parameters of the creep compliance distributions were shown to be time and temperature dependent. Two-dimensional quadratic Lagrange interpolation functions were used to characterize the Weibull parameters to obtain the PDFs and, subsequently, the CDFs of the creep compliances for the complete design temperature range during steady state creep. At each test temperature, creep compliance curves were obtained for constant CDF values and compared with the experimental data. The predicted creep compliances of the selected VE polymer in the design space are in good agreement with the experimental data for all three test temperatures.     

Influence of the type of epoxy hardener on the structure and properties of interpenetrated vinyl ester/epoxy resins

The morphology–toughness relationship of vinyl ester/cycloaliphatic epoxy hybrid resins of interpenetrating network (IPN) structures was studied as a function of the epoxy hardening. The epoxy was crosslinked via polyaddition reactions (with aliphatic and cycloaliphatic diamines), cationic homopolymerization (via a boron trifluoride complex), and maleic anhydride. Maleic anhydride worked as a dual‐phase crosslinking agent by favoring the formation of a grafted IPN structure between the vinyl ester and epoxy. The type of epoxy hardener strongly affected the IPN morphology and toughness. The toughness was assessed by linear elastic fracture mechanics, which determined the fracture toughness and energy. The more compact the IPN structure was, the lower the fracture energy was of the interpenetrated vinyl ester/epoxy formulations. This resulted in the following toughness ranking: aliphatic diamine > cycloaliphatic diamine ≥ boron trifluoride complex > maleic anhydride. For IPN characterization, the width of the entangling bands and the surface roughness parameters were considered. Their values were deduced from atomic force microscopy scans taken on ion‐etched surfaces. More compact, less rough IPN‐structured resins possessed lower toughness parameters than less compact, rougher structured ones. The latter were less compatible according to dynamic mechanical thermal and thermogravimetric analyses. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 5471–5481, 2004     

Effect of fluorine functional groups on surface and mechanical interfacial properties of epoxy resins

To improve the surface and mechanical interfacial properties of epoxy resins, fluorine-containing epoxy resin (FEP) was prepared and blended with a commercially available tetrafunctional epoxy resin (TGDDM). As a result, when the fluorine content increased, the total surface energy of TGDDM/FEP blends was gradually decreased, while the water repellency of the blends was increased. The glass transition temperature and thermal stability factors of the blends showed maximum values at 20-40 wt% FEP compared with neat TGDDM epoxy resins. And the mechanical interfacial properties of the blend specimens were significantly increased with increasing the FEP content, which could be attributed to the intermacromolecular interactions in the cured TGDDM/FEP blends. These results indicate that the water repellency and toughness improvements have been achieved without significantly deterioration of the thermal properties in the TGDDM/FEP blends.     

Mechanical properties of polymer composites based on commercial epoxy vinyl ester resin and glass fiber

The effect of the addition of methyl ethyl ketone peroxide (MEKP) and cobalt naphthenate (CoNaph) on the mechanical behavior of epoxy vinyl ester resin (EVER) laminates has been investigated by using a factorial experimental design, in which the MEKP and NaphCo contents were varied. Previous results showed that there is an interaction effect between the process variables analysed on the mechanical properties evaluated. It was also observed that the MEKP/CoNaph ratio affected the tensile behavior of the EVER/glass fiber composites.     

Simultaneous study of cure kinetics and rheology of montmorillonite/vinyl ester resin nanocomposites

In this work, the effect of quaternary ammonium salt containing nanoclay content (1–5 wt%) on phase morphology, rheology, cure kinetics, and mechanical properties of the vinyl ester resin (VER)‐based nanocomposites was studied. The morphological characterization including d‐spacing measurement, microscopy observation and phase‐height image processing were performed on the prepared nanocomposites using small angel X‐ray scattering (SAXS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). According to the results obtained from these techniques, it was concluded that an intercalated morphology existed for all the nanocomposites. The kinetic analyses of the isothermal curing followed by storage modulus obtained from the rheometry experiments are shown to be an affective rheological characteristic to investigate the cure behavior of VER/clay nanocomposites. In addition, the most important finding regarding the effect of nanoclay on the cross‐linking behavior of VER systems lays on the chemisorption and physisorption of the reacting monomers and initiator molecules on the nanoclay platelets surface which is found to be responsible for the retardation of the cure reaction caused by organoclay. Eventually, the mechanical characterizations were performed through the tensile, flexural and impact analysis tests. In this case, a considerable improvement of the bulk mechanical responses such as tensile and flexural strengths and also the corresponding moduli were observed for the nanocomposites. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Studies on novel interacting blends of acrylated poly(ester-amide)s having epoxy residues and vinyl ester of bisphenol-C

Novel unsaturated poly(ester-amide)s (UPEAs) were prepared by the reaction of Bisphenol-F based epoxy resin with bisamic acids. Acrylation of UPEAs were carried out using acryloyl chloride and the products are called Acrylated unsaturated poly(ester-amide)s (AUPEAs). These UPEAs were then treated with acrylol chloride to afford acrylated UPEAs resin (i.e., AUPEAs). Interacting blends of equal proportional AUPEAs and vinyl ester epoxy (VE) resin were prepared. APEAs and AUPEAs were characterized by elemental analysis, molecular weight determined by vapor pressure osmometer, IR spectral study and thermogravimetry. Curing of interacting blends was monitored on differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). Based on DSC data ‘in situ’ glass reinforced composites of the resultant blends have been prepared and characterized for mechanical, electrical and chemical properties. Unreinforced blends were characterized by thermogravimetry (TGA).     

Synthesis,characterization of novel interacting blends of acrylated poly(ester-amide)s containing epoxy residues with vinyl ester resin

Unsaturated bisamic acids were prepared by reaction between maleic anhydride and different aromatic diamines. Unsaturated poly(ester-amide) resin (UPEAs) was prepared by reaction of diglycidylether of bisphenol-A (DGEBA) with unsaturated bisamic acids. Acrylation of Unsaturated poly(ester-amide)s (UPEAs) was carried out to afford acrylated UPEAs resin (i.e., AUPEAs). Interacting blends of Acrylated unsaturated poly(ester-amide)s (AUPEAs) with vinyl ester epoxy (VE) resin were prepared. APEAs and AUPEAs were characterized by elemental analysis, molecular weight determined by vapor pressure osmometer and by IR spectral study and by thermogravimetry. The curing of interacting blends was monitored on differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). Based on DSC data in situ glass reinforced composites of the resultant blends have been prepared and characterized for mechanical, electrical and chemical properties. Unreinforced blends were characterized thermo-gravimetrically (TGA).     

Effect of strain rate on the compression behaviour of a woven fabric S2-glass fiber reinforced vinyl ester composite

Quasi-static (˜10⁻³s⁻¹) and high strain rate (>500 s⁻¹) compression behavior of an S2-glass woven fabric/vinyl ester composite plate was determined in the in-plane and through-thickness directions. In both directions, modulus and failure strength increased with increasing strain rate. A higher strain rate sensitive modulus was found in the through-thickness direction while a higher strain rate sensitive failure strength was found in the in-plane direction. In the in-plane direction, the failure mode was observed to change from splitting followed by “kink banding” (localized fiber buckling) to predominantly splitting at increasing strain rates, while it remained the same in the through-thickness direction.     

Investigations on the cure chemistry and polymer properties of benzoxazine-cyanate ester blends

Thermosetting polymer blends composed of bisphenol A based benzoxazine (BA-a) and cyanate ester (BACY) were prepared via co-curing of benzoxazine with cyanate ester. DSC results manifested a multiple curing pattern with associated heat of reaction implying a co-reaction between oxazine moiety and cyanate group. The catalysis during the co-curing of blend was ascribed to the cycloaddition reaction between the two groups followed by the ring-opening of benzoxazine and cyclotrimerisation of cyanate ester. The spectral and analytical data supported the possibilities of further polymerization through the insertion of the phenolic OH of polybenzoxazine to cyanate group to form the intermediate iminocarbonate, which further induce curing of cyanate ester to form polycyanurate. A co-reacted network composed of triazine ring as a part of polybenzoxazine matrix is postulated. The co-reaction temperature diminished with increase in cyanate ester content in the blend. A single T_g was observed in DMTA of the cured matrix that implied a linked homogeneous matrix containing both triazine and polybenzoxazine. This was substantiated by the TGA, DTA and SEM behavior of the cured polymer. The modulus of the cured blend was higher than those of the component resins of the blend. The co-reaction with cyanate ester enhanced the high temperature stability of polybenzoxazine.     

Mechanical and flame‐retardant properties and thermal decomposition of vinyl ester resin modified by different phenyl silsesquioxanes

The mechanical properties and fire resistance of vinyl ester resin (VER) composites containing cage‐shaped octaphenyl silsesquioxane (OPS), incompletely cage‐shaped phenyl silsesquioxane (PhT₇POSS), and ladder‐shaped phenyl silsesquioxane (PPSQ) were investigated. The POSS structure and dispersion have a great influence on the mechanical properties, thermal stability, and decomposition process of VER composites. The bending strength at break and modulus of the VER‐POSS composites were enhanced obviously, especially for VER‐PPSQ composite and VER‐OPS composite, respectively. In addition, PhT₇POSS‐based VER composites revealed the lower values of the peak heat release rate, total heat release, and total smoke release in cone calorimetry tests due to the formation of dense carbon/silica protective layers that acted as a barrier to heat and mass transfer. Moreover, the flame‐retardant mechanisms of condensed phase and gas phase were also investigated in detail. These results illustrate VERs modified by OPS, PhT₇POSS, and PPSQ are providing an applicable method to fabricate the composites with excellent flame‐retardant and mechanical properties.     

Adsorption of surfactants onto acrylic ester resins with different pore size distribution

In this study, a series of acrylic ester resins with different pore size distribution were prepared successfully by varying the type and the amount of pore-forming agents. In order to inves-tigate the adsorption behavior and mechanism of surfactants on acrylic ester resins, three kinds of surfactants were utilized as adsorbates that were sodium 6-dodecyl benzenesulfonate (6-NaDBS), sodium 1-dodecyl benzene sulfonate (1-NaDBS) and sodium 1-dodecyl sulfonate, respectively. It was observed that the surface area was available in a particular pore size and an appropriate pore size of resins appeared to be more important for the adsorption of surfactants. As compared to commercial acrylic ester resins XAD-7 and HP2MG, 50# and 38# resins exhibited more excellent adsorption properties toward 1-NaDBS and 6-NaDBS. The experimental equilibrium data were fitted to the Langmuir, and double-Langmuir models. Two models provided very good fittings for all resins over the temperature range studied. The investigation indicated that electrostatic attraction and hydrogen bond between resins and surfactants were the main forces and had an obvious effect on adsorption proc-ess.     

Effect of aromatic substitution on the cure reaction and network properties of anhydride cured triphenyl ether tetraglycidyl epoxy resins

A systemic study of the impact of aromatic substitution on the reaction rate and network properties of the isomers of a tetraglycidylaniline triphenyl ether epoxy resin cured with anhydride hardeners is presented here. The epoxy resins synthesized in this work were based upon N,N,N,N‐tetraglycidyl bis(aminophenoxy)benzene (TGAPB), where the glycidyl aniline and ether groups change from being all meta (133 TGAPB), to meta and para (134 TGAPB), and finally to an all para substituted epoxy resin (144 TGAPB). Increasing para substitution increased reaction rate, promoted the onset of vitrification and increased epoxide conversion. Thermal properties such as glass transition temperatures (T_g) and coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE) both increased consistently with increasing para substitution, although thermal stability as measured via thermogravimetric analysis decreased. Mechanical properties also varied systematically with flexural strength and ductility increasing with increased para substitution, while the modulus decreased. Indeed, the ductility almost doubled, as measured by the work of fracture and displacement at failure highlighting the importance of substitution on properties.     

Effect of α-methylstyrene of the curing behaviour of vinyl ester resins

The curing behaviour of bismethacryloxy derivative of diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (vinyl ester resin) containing styrene as the reactive diluent (40% w/w) was studied using gel point determination method and DSC. Seven samples of styrene/-methylstyrene in the ratio 400, 355, 3010, 2515, 2020, 1525 and 040 were studied. Delayed curing was observed in samples containing increasing proportions of -methylstyrene. The energy of activation decreased from 869 kJ mol^–1 to 333 kJ mol^–1 as the concentration of -methylstyrene increased in the formulations. However, no difference in thermal stability was observed by replacement of styrene by -methylstyrene. It was concluded that in vinyl ester resin samples 10–15% -methylstyrene and 30-25% styrene can be used as reactive diluent.

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Zusammenfassung Mittels DSC und Bestimmung der Gelierungstemperatur wurde das Aushärteverhalften des Bismethakryloxyderivaten des Diglycidyläthers von Bisphenol A (Vinylesterharz) mit 40 Gewichtsprozenten Styrol als reaktives Streckmittel untersucht. Es würden sieben Proben mit einem Styrol/-Methylstyrol Verhältnis von 400, 355, 3010, 2515, 2020, 1525 und 040 untersucht. Mit steigendem Anteil an -Methylstyrol konnte eine Verzögerung der Aushärtung sowie ein Absinken der Aktivierungsenergie von 869 kJ · mol^–1 auf 333 kJ · mol^–1 beobachtet werden. Der Ersatz von Styrol durch -Methylstyrol veränderte jedoch die thermische Stabilität in keiner Weise. Vinylesterharzproben mit 10–15% -Methylstyrol und 30–25% Styrol können als reaktive Streckmittel in Vinylesterharzen verwendet werden.

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- - , 40 .% . /-, 400, 355, 3010, 2515, 2020, 1525 040. - . - 869 333 · ^–1. , .. , , 10–15% - 30–25% .

     

In situ FTIR and DSC investigation on cure reaction of liquid aromatic dicyanate ester with different types of epoxy resin

Cure reactions of a liquid aromatic dicyanate ester [1,1′‐bis(4‐cyanatophenyl) ethane, DiCy] associated with a liquid cycloaliphatic epoxy ester (3,4‐epoxycyclohexylmethyl‐3,4‐epoxycyclohexane‐carboxylate, EPC) and with liquid bisphenol A epoxide [2,2‐bis(4‐glycidyloxyphenyl)propane, EPA] were studied through a cross‐reference between in situ FTIR and DSC dynamic scanning. DiCy can act here as a latent catalyst to cure EPC and EPA resins. Reaction mechanisms were found to be different for both curing systems (EPC/DiCy and EPA/DiCy). Two significantly separated exotherms were observed in the DSC thermograms in each system. The reaction mechanism of the EPA/DiCy system was found to follow mainly Bauer pathways. We postulate a new sequence of the mechanism in this system due to the presence of an oxazoline structure during the progression of the curing process. In the curing system of EPC/DiCy, however, another five principle reaction paths, rather than Bauer pathways, are suggested: (1) polycyclotrimerization of DiCy, (2) formation of oxazoline, (3) insertion of EPC into cyanurate, (4) formation of tetrahydro–oxazolo–oxazole, and (5) ring cleavage and reformation of oxazoline to form the insertion structure of cyanurate. The lower temperature peak in the DSC thermogram is primarily contributed by the former three reaction paths, whereas the higher temperature peak can mainly be attributed to the reaction paths 4 and 5. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 38: 2934–2944, 2000