Evaluation of epoxy cured with Ethacure 100 curing agent for use in headers for thermal batteries.

摘要

Diethyltoluenediamine (DETDA) (Ethyl Corp.'s Ethacure 100) was evaluated as a curing agent to replace methylenedianiline (MDA) (Shell's Agent Z), which is a suspected carcinogen. Shell Z and Ethacure 100 are used to cure Epon 828 epoxy resin for encapsulation of headers for thermal batteries at Sandia. The physical properties of the alumina-filled epoxies cured with Shell Z and Ethacure 100 were characterized to determine if the material strengths were comparable. The study also included epoxies that were aged at 130(degrees)C for one month, to simulate storage at 40(degrees)C for 25 years. Properties that were measured included tensile strength, elastic modulus, shear strength, butt tensile strength, and elongation. The. specific heats of the alumina-filled epoxies were measured for use in thermal-modeling programs for thermal batteries. Batteries built with the Ethacure 100-cured epoxy encapsulation were aged for up to one year at 74(degrees)C and were subjected to severe (1,800 g/50 ms) lateral shock to test the adhesion to the stainless steel header. (ERA citation 17:028782)