Chemorheological characterization of thermoset cure

Abstract

Thermosetting resin/glass cloth composites find extensive use in the packaging of electrical circuits into multi‐layered circuit boards. To determine optimum processing conditions, it is necessary to understand the rheology of the resin as it cures. In this study, a squeezing flow geometry was used to determine the shear viscosity of a high performance epoxy resin during cure; Viscosity profiles were obtained during rising temperature cure. The results were compared with the complex viscosities obtained using the dynamic oscillatory parallel plate geometry. A numerical optimization algorithm was used to obtain the dual Arrhenius viscosity model parameters from the experimental viscosity data. The sensitivities of the model parameters and their effects on the predicted viscosity profiles were also determined.