Rheological Study of Particle Packing in Unsaturated Polyester Resin loaded with Alumina Trihydrate

摘要

High viscosity of highly filled unsaturated polyester (UPE) resin in SMC/BMC can be a detriment to achieving the full benefit of alumina trihydrate (ATH) as flame retardant mineral filler. Rheological studies have been conducted in order to ascertain more detailed information of the particle packing mechanism which is a well known way to reduce viscosity [1, 2, 3]. Based on the rheological data general guidelines for particle packing are proposed in this paper. This is important because greater understanding of the particle packing mechanism equips the formulator to better meet the increasing demands of today's marketplace and specifically in the area of flame retardance.