The mechanical and rheological behavior of thermosetting polymers during cure is not fully understood. Today's models and simulations make use of ad hoc approximations that relate the strength properties of thermosets linearly to the degree of cure. These assumptions work well when predicting the thermomechanical behavior of thin parts, but are not valid for thick parts where the phase change is space dependent and significantly contributes to the residual stress build-up. Within this work, different thermoanalytical measurements were carried out on a standard SMC paste without any fiber reinforcement. Thin plates, were compression molded at different mold temperatures for different periods of time. The degree of cure of the specimens were determined using DSC and TGA measurements. The modulus as a function of temperature was measured using a three point bending DMA setup. Using time-temperature superposition and cure dependent shifts, a master curve that represents a reduced modulus as a function of a reduced temperature was generated. To perform thermomechanical analysis of curing thermosetting parts, a model that fits the reduced stiffness master curve was developed
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