Analytical estimates of front velocity in the frontal polymerization of thermoset polymers and composites

Abstract

This note presents approximate analytical expressions for the velocity of the self‐propagating reaction front in the frontal polymerization of thermoset polymers and composites. Prior estimates available in the literature for the front velocity have been limited by their applicability to simple reaction kinetics. The improved estimates provided in this work are shown to be applicable to complex reaction kinetics encountered in the frontal polymerization of neat thermoset polymers or fiber‐reinforced polymer‐matrix composites with a wide range of polymer chemistries, including dicyclopentadiene, cyclooctadiene, acrylates, and epoxies. They are also shown to be applicable to wide range of values of the initial temperature and initial degree of cure of the resin, and of the volume fraction of the reinforcing phase.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Apr 30, 2021
Source ID
10.1002/pol.20210155

Entities

People

  • Aditya Kumar
  • Philippe H Geubelle
  • Yuan Gao

Organizations

  • Air Force Office of Scientific Research
  • Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology
  • National Science Foundation
  • United States Air Force
  • University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Materials science

Readers

  • Calculus or Mathematical Analysis
  • Polymer Science and Engineering.
  • Reinforced Composite Materials