Effect of amino-polycarbonate on the curing kinetics and morphology of epoxy resin

The curing kinetics and the glass transition behavior of amino-polycarbonat e with diglycidyl ether of bisphenol-A epoxy resin systems were studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The ASTM E-698 method was chosen t o determine the kinetics parameters of the curing reaction, including the a ctivation energy, preexponential factor, rate constant, and 60-min half-lif e temperature. The amino-polycarbonate was able to accelerate the curing re action, reduce the apparent active energy, and decrease T-g of the systems. A homogeneous amino-polycarbonate/epoxy resin network was observed in scan ning electron microscopy (SEM) pictures. (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.