Characterization and modelling of diffusion and reaction of low molecular weight reactants in molten polymer

Effect of water addition on the cure kinetics of an epoxy‐amine thermoset

“…As has been suggested in a number of previous studies, the main cure mechanism for epoxide amine reactions has been generally described by two reaction paths: (1) reactions catalyzed by compounds containing nitrogen–hydrogen bonds (designated as “noncatalytic” by previous workers) and (2) those by oxygen–hydrogen bonds (catalytic) 19, 29–34. It is often described that the reaction of an epoxide group with an amine occurs through the formation of termolecular intermediates consisting of an amine, epoxide, and hydroxyl due to the existence of hydrogen bonding, in which the formation of the termolecular intermediate is the rate determining step 7, 14, 19, 27, 34–36. In addition, it is suggested that the amine can be bi‐functional in that it acts both as an electrophilic and nucleophilic reagent 27, 35.…”