SynopsisPhenolic resins [commercial (CP), pure (PP), and woodflour-filled (WP)] corrtaining different levels of hexamine, were evaluated in terms of curing behavior as well as thermal, electrical, and mechanical Properties. The degree and rate of curing increase markedly with the rise of the hexamine content; however, the dielectric constant, dielectric loss, and dissipation factor decrease gradually. Dielectrical values decrease with the increase of the applied frequency. When the ratios of hexamine to phenolics are increased, samples become harder and experience increased molding shrinkage. With the increase of molding time or temperature, the surface hardness and molding shrinkage improve. The optimal hexamine contents of WP and PP are determined with respect to the above properties.
INTRODUCTIONPhenolic resins were the first completely synthetic polymeric materials and have been widely used as engineering plastics because of their good moldability, mechanical and electrical properties, and economical merit. They are generally produced by compounding novolac resins with hexamethylenetetramine (hexamine), woodflour, lubricants, and pigments through a hot roll-milling process. During the production, their flow and curing characteristics, which are thought to dominate moldablility and performance, are largely influenced by heating conditions in the roll-milling process. Phenolic resin performance is usually characterized by curing behavior, thermal analysis, and electrical and mechanical properties, which are dependent on curing time, molding pressure, molding temperature, and heat treatment.An undercured molding, with a low degree of crosslinking, lacks optimal mechanical strength as well as heat and chemical resistance; however, overcured molding leads to embrittlement. Therefore, it is important to obtain the necessary information on conditions which will produce the proper degree of crosslinking.Many test methods have been proposed for judging the degree of crosslinking.' They include water absorption at the boiling point, solvent extraction, recompression molding, electrical resistance, physical properties such as flexural strength and hardness at elevated temperature,and heat distortion temperature. Each method has its advantages and disadvantages; as a result, they are often used in combination depending on the resin type and molding shape.The most popular method is solvent extraction, in which acetone and tetrahydrofuran (THF) are generally used for phenolics. The principle is based on the fact that the amount of extractable resin diminishes with curing.Journal of Applied Polymer Science, Vol. 37, 499-512 (1989)
CHIANG AND YANGHowever, this method has the disadvantage of being time consuming, not only in the extraction operation, but also in preparing a pulverized sample for molding. Methods of measuring flow/curing characteristics may be roughly classified into three categories2 (a) tests using a molding press, which may include ASTM cup mold and JIS disk flow test; (b) orifice flow tests, which may ...