Curable Composition for Optical Molding Mold Durability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current curable compositions used in silicone molds for producing optical components tend to permeate through the molds, causing swelling and reducing their durability and service life, leading to inaccurate and costly results.
Innovation Solution
A curable composition comprising a cycloaliphatic epoxy compound, an oxetane compound, and a glycidyl ether epoxy compound, with specific molecular weight and solubility parameters, that minimizes permeation through silicone molds, ensuring excellent chargeability, curability, and heat resistance while maintaining mold durability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a photocurable composition including epoxy resin is used, then curability is improved, but the silicone molds swell gradually and durability decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameters of the curable composition by specifying particular epoxy compounds (cycloaliphatic epoxy compound with molecular weight 300-900, glycidyl ether epoxy compound with molecular weight 350-1500) and their content ratios. This parameter optimization reduces permeation into silicone molds while maintaining curability, thereby extending mold service life.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite curable composition system combining multiple epoxy compounds (cycloaliphatic epoxy, glycidyl ether epoxy, and other epoxy compounds) with oxetane compounds and photoinitiators. This composite formulation achieves balanced properties: sufficient curability from epoxy content while reduced permeation through controlled molecular weight distribution and compound selection.
2Ease of operation
If curable composition with low molecular weight is used, then chargeability into molds is improved, but permeation through silicone molds increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes the molecular weight parameter of the epoxy compounds within specific ranges (cycloaliphatic epoxy: 300-900, glycidyl ether epoxy: 350-1500). This parameter control ensures the composition remains fluid enough for good chargeability into molds while being heavy enough to reduce permeation, resolving the contradiction between ease of operation and harmful permeation effects.
3Productivity
If repeated use of silicone molds is required, then manufacturing cost is reduced, but mold swelling from permeation reduces accuracy
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the compositional parameters to reduce permeation, specifically controlling the molecular weights and types of epoxy compounds. This reduction in permeation prevents mold swelling during repeated use, thereby maintaining shape transfer accuracy and enabling productive repeated mold usage without degradation.
4Manufacturing precision
If heat resistance is improved in cured product, then manufacturing precision is improved, but mold swelling increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes parameters by selecting specific epoxy compounds with appropriate molecular weights and controlling their content ratios. This parameter optimization achieves heat resistance in the cured product through sufficient crosslinking density while simultaneously reducing permeation-induced mold swelling, resolving the contradiction between these two 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 composition allows for repeated use of silicone molds with improved durability and accuracy in producing optical components, offering economic efficiency and high-quality optical components with excellent shape transferability and heat resistance.
Implementation Method 1
a photoinitiator for generating radicals by action of UV light
Implementation Method 2
this curable composition is liable to permeate through silicone molds, thereby causes the silicone molds to swell gradually
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~4
AI summary
Provided is a curable composition which has chargeability into silicone molds and curability at excellent levels, less causes the silicone molds to swell, and allows the silicone molds to have better durability and a longer service life in repeated use. The curable composition according to the present invention contains curable compounds and a cationic initiator and is used for production of an optical component by molding using silicone molds. The curable compounds include (A) a cycloaliphatic epoxy compound in a content of 10 weight percent or more of the totality of all the curable compounds contained in the curable composition. Of the totality of all the curable compounds contained in the curable composition, 10 to 50 weight percent is a curable compound or compounds having a molecular weight of 400 or more.