Kinetic investigation of the curing reactions of tetrafunctional epoxy resin in the presence of amine curing agent

Due to their high specific mechanical strength properties as well as their high chemical reactivity, chemical resistance and thermal resistance, which enable them to adhere to a wide variety of surfaces, epoxy resins are in a very important position for sectors such as aviation, space, marine and automotive. They are also widely used in the electrical industry as insulators due to their electrical resistance. Although research on the mechanical and thermal strengths of epoxy resins continues continuously, one of the most important factors affecting the mechanical and thermal strengths of the resin in the cured state is the curing agent and curing process. In this study, two different epoxy resins that were previously produced were reproduced and characterized in accordance with their procedures. The curing agent for both the difunctional (diglycidyl ether bisphenol-A) and tetrafunctional (tetraglycidyl diamino diphenyl methane) resins was used as diamino diphenyl methane. The reactions that occur between epoxy-amine groups and provide crosslinking and curing are auto-catalytic. First, dynamic experiments were carried out using constant heating rates and isothermal experiments were carried out depending on the data obtained. Activation energies were calculated for each system.