Details of Grant 

EPSRC Reference:	GR/M14142/01
Title:	POLYMER AND COMPOSITE PROCESSING USING ELECTRON AND PROTON BEAMS
Principal Investigator:	Hay, Professor J
Other Investigators:	Clough, Professor AS Howlin, Dr BJ Hamerton, Professor I
Researcher Co-Investigators:
Project Partners:	Akcros Chemicals BAE Systems Ministry of Defence (MOD)
Department:	Chemistry
Organisation:	University of Surrey
Scheme:	Standard Research (Pre-FEC)
Starts:	01 January 1999	Ends:	31 March 2002	Value (£):	247,627
EPSRC Research Topic Classifications:	Materials Processing
EPSRC Industrial Sector Classifications:	Manufacturing
Related Grants:
Panel History:
Summary on Grant Application Form
The ultimate aim of this project is to raise the UK level of understanding of the potential for electron and proton beam curing of high performance thermosetting polymers used in the aerospace industry. The project will involve a study of neat resins and model composites. The resins studied will include thermosetting polyimides and expoxies. A comparison of the efficiency of e-beam versus proton beam cure will be made. The key parameters affecting cure and processing will be identified. The effect of reactive diluents will be assessed for the polyimides. For the epoxies, the photogeneration of curing agents such as amines and imidazoles will be studied. An important aspect of the work will be an in-depth study of the thermoset resin cure, using spectroscopic techniques including in situ fibre optics. The data will be used to develop kinetic models of cure and rate constants which will be essential input into future process models. Physical and mechanical properties of selected resins and composites will be determined. By the end of the project, we expect to have highlighted the scope and limitations of these processing methods for use with important thermosetting composite and coating resins.
Key Findings
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Potential use in non-academic contexts
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Organisation Website:	http://www.surrey.ac.uk