Curing kinetics of an acrylic resin epoxy resin system using dynamic scanning calorimetry

An analysis of the cure kinetics of epoxy resin with an acrylic copolymer (acrylic acid-butyl acrylate-methylmethacrylate) using a dimethylbenzolamine (DMBA) catalyst is presented. The kinetic studies were carried out with a dynamic scanning calorimeter in both dynamic (Barret, Freeman-Carroll and Kissinger Methods) and isothermal modes of operation. The effects of heating rates and catalyst concentration on the activation energy and reaction order were investigated. The activation energy found in the dynamic experiments was on the order of 22 kcal/mol. In the same set of experiments, the frequency factor of the effective rate constant varied from 4.9 x 10(8) to 3.6 x 10(9) sec(-1), and the order of reaction increased from 1.2 to 1.4 as a function of the catalyst concentration. On the other hand, the isothermal experiments yielded slightly different results: a frequency factor on the order of 8.9 x 10(8) sec(-1), a reaction order of approximately 1.1, and an activation energy of 17.9 kcal mol(-1). (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd.