CURE KINETICS OF AN EPOXY-AMINE ADHESIVE SYSTEM BY MEANS OF DIFFERENTIAL SCANNING CALORIMETRY

摘要

The cure kinetics of a medical grade epoxy-amine adhesive is studied under dynamic conditions by means of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and analyzed using a generalized autocatalytic model of chemical reaction. It is established that the model can be used to determine the degree of conversion, rate of conversion, and the exothermic heat of cure during any curing process with the use of the classical fourth-order Runge-Kutta numerical method. Also, the cure experiments under various quasi-isothermal conditions have been performed and the heat flows of cure measured as functions of cure times, which are then compared with the model calculations. The above numerical approach, coupled with convenient calorimetric cure measurements under dynamic conditions, provides a convenient and reliable tool for developing an oven-curing schedule of the adhesive in medical device industry.