Journal of Applied Polymer Science, Vol.126, No.1, 358-366, 2012
Investigation of the effect of double-walled carbon nanotubes on the curing reaction kinetics and shear flow of an epoxy resin
In this article, the effect of combined temperature-concentration and shear rate conditions on the rheology of double-walled carbon nanotubes (DWCNTs)/RTM6-Epoxy suspension was investigated to determine the optimum processing conditions. The rheological behavior and cure kinetics of this nanocomposite are presented. Cure kinetics analysis of the epoxy resin and the epoxy resin filled with DWCNTs was performed using Differential Scanning Calorimeter (DSC) and parameters of the kinetics model were compared. The DWCNTs have an acceleration effect on the reaction rate of the epoxy resin but no significant effect is noted on the glass transition temperature of the epoxy resin. This study reveals that the effect of shear-thinning is more pronounced at high temperatures when DWCNTs content is increased. In addition, the steady shear flow exhibits a thermally activated property above 60 degrees C whereas the polymer fluid viscosity is influenced by the free volume and cooperative effects when the temperature is below 60 degrees C. (C) 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012
Keywords:differential scanning calorimetry;shear viscosity;cure kinetics;carbon nanotubes;epoxy;glass transition