Autocatalytic cure kinetics of natural zeolite filled epoxy composites

The effect of natural zeolite on the cure kinetics of epoxy resin system was studied by autocatalytic cure kinetics. In the thermograms obtained from dynamic analysis, the exothermic peak separated into two peaks by the addition of natural zeolite, and the exothermic peak temperatures and the reaction starting temperatures decreased. In the autocatalytic cure rate, the maximum cure rate appeared at lower temperature and the cure rate increased with the addition of zeolite. This meant that the natural zeolite as an accelerator changed the cure mechanism and increased the cure rate.