How do you optimize the curing of fiber reinforced composites? (VIDEO)
Date: - Categories: Applications & Technologies
Formulating composite resins: the role of the crosslinking agent
Fiber reinforced composites are increasingly replacing metals in structural parts, thanks to their strength, light weight and low cost. These properties have contributed significantly to their widespread adoption in the manufacturing of wind turbine blades.
The matrix holding these composites together is usually a thermoset resin, and its performance depends entirely on how well it cures.
Getting the amount of curing, or crosslinking, agent right is therefore a critical formulation step: too little and curing stays slow and incomplete; too much, and the resulting material may no longer achieve its optimum performance.
Why DSC is essential for studying curing reactions
The curing of a thermoset resin is an exothermic reaction, which makes it directly measurable by differential scanning calorimetry. Upon heating, the reaction appears as an exothermic peak whose onset temperature and profile depend on the formulation.
By comparing samples prepared with different amounts of crosslinking agent, DSC reveals exactly how the dosage affects the curing behavior, giving manufacturers the data they need to adjust their formulation to each application.
From lab to life: the experiment explained
Watch a video presenting a case study on how differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) helps optimize the curing of a biobased polyester resin used in fiber reinforced composites.
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