Curing (chemistry) Curing (chemistry) Curing is a term in polymer chemistry and process engineering that refers to the toughening or hardening of a polymer material by cross-linking of polymer chains, brought about by electron beams, heat, or chemical additives. When the additives are activated by ultraviolet radiation, the process is called UV Cure. In rubber, the curing process is also called vulcanization. Five types of curing systems are in common use. They are: Despite the wide variety of thermoset resin formulations (epoxy, vinylester, polyester, etc.), their cure behavior is qualitatively identical. The resin viscosity drops initially upon the application of heat, passes
Rubber toughening and CTBN toughened epoxies. Engineers use an energy-balance approach to model how particle size and rubber modulus factors influence material toughness. Both particle size and modulus show positive correlation with brittle-tough transition temperatures. They are both shown to affect the cavitation process occurring at the crack tip process zone early in deformation, preceding large-scale crazing and shear yielding. In order to show increased toughness under strain, the volumetric strain must overcome the energy of void formation as modeled by the equation: formula_1 "where formula_2 and formula_3 are the shear modulus and bulk modulus of the rubber, formula_4 is the volume