A comparative study of the course of curing of epoxide resins with various curing agents and of thermal decomposition of the cured products

The differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) method was used for comparative studies on the course of curing of low-molecular-weight bisphenol A-based epoxide resin with various amino compounds (including amino adducts of epoxide resin), dicyandiamide, and a biguanide derivative. The following parameters of the crosslinking process were determined: temperatures of the onset, the maximum and the end of the thermal effect of curing (T-o, T-p and T-k, resp.), thermal effect of curing (Delta H), activation energy of this process (E(a)), its order (n) and pre-exponential coefficient (K-o). Glass transition temperatures (T-g) Of the cured resins were also determined. The course of the thermal decomposition of the epoxide resins cured with the above-mentioned curing agents was compared by the use of a derivatograph.