Amine-Phenol Curing Agent for Low Viscosity RTM Composites
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Solution Overview
Problem
Epoxy resin compositions used in high-cycle RTM methods require rapid curability and low viscosity to enhance productivity, but existing epoxy resin curing agents do not meet these requirements effectively, particularly for carbon fiber-reinforced composite materials.
Innovation Solution
An epoxy resin curing agent containing a specific amine compound and a phenol compound, with the phenol compound acting as a curing accelerator, is used to achieve rapid curability and low viscosity, allowing for efficient infiltration and curing within the epoxy resin composition.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional epoxy resin curing agents are used, then the epoxy resin composition has sufficient pot life for molding operations, but the curability is too slow to meet high-cycle RTM productivity requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical parameters of the curing agent by combining amine compounds with specific structural features (aromatic rings, cyclic structures) and controlling the number of amino groups and molecular weight. This parameter optimization enables rapid curability while maintaining processability, directly resolving the contradiction between fast curing and productivity requirements for high-cycle RTM molding.
2Productivity
If the epoxy resin composition has rapid curability, then productivity is improved, but the viscosity is too high for proper infiltration into carbon fibers
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes multiple parameters simultaneously: selects amine compounds with specific molecular weights (50-500 g/mol), controls the number of amino groups (2-6), and introduces aromatic rings or cyclic structures. These parameter changes achieve the difficult balance of low viscosity for good infiltration performance while maintaining rapid curability for high productivity in high-cycle RTM processes.
3Ease of operation
If the epoxy resin composition has low viscosity for good infiltration, then the composition can properly fill the mold, but the curability is insufficient for high-cycle RTM productivity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a composite curing system by combining amine compounds with specific structural characteristics (aromatic rings, cyclic structures, controlled molecular weight and amino group count). This composite approach at the molecular level enables the epoxy resin composition to simultaneously achieve low viscosity for excellent infiltration performance and rapid curability for high-cycle RTM productivity requirements.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The resulting epoxy resin composition exhibits rapid curability and low viscosity, significantly reducing molding time and improving productivity for carbon fiber-reinforced composite materials, particularly in high-cycle RTM methods, while maintaining mechanical properties.
Implementation Method 1
an epoxy resin curing agent containing an amine compound (A) represented by the following general formula (1) and a phenol compound (B)... wherein the content of the component (B) is from 8 to 35 parts by mass relative to 100 parts by mass of the component (A)
Data Source
AI summary
Provided are: an epoxy resin curing agent containing an amine compound (A) represented by the following general formula (1) and a phenol compound (B), wherein the content of the component (B) is 8 to 35 parts by mass relative to 100 parts by mass of the component (A), an epoxy resin composition containing it, and a carbon fiber-reinforced composite material containing a cured product of the epoxy resin composition and carbon fibers. R1HN—H2C-A-CH2—NHR2 (1) wherein R1 and R2 each independently represent a hydrogen atom, or an aminoalkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms, and A represents a cyclohexylene group or a phenylene group.