Thermoset polymers and coatings subjected to high compressive loads

Abstract: This study describes the mechanical response of thermoset polymers under high compressive loads. The study is divided into two parts. The first part focuses on the behaviour of a powder coating when used in a clamping force joint and how the properties vary when the chemical and physical structure of the coating is changed. The second part discusses the fundamental understanding of the behaviour of thermoset polymers with small thickness-to-width ratio subjected to compressive stresses, the aim being to develop mathematical material models for viscoelastic materials under high compressive loads.In the first part polyester powder coatings were used with variations in molecular weight, number of functional groups of the resin, amount and type of filler and thickness of the coating. The coatings were subjected to conventional tests for coatings and polymers and also to specially designed tests developed to study the behaviour of powder coatings in clamping force joints.The high compressive loads in a clamping force joint put high demands on the relaxation and creep resistance of the coating and the study shows the importance of crosslink density, filler content, and also coating thickness in order to achieve the desired mechanical properties of a coating.A high reactivity of the resin, facilitating a high crosslink density and hence a high Tg, is the most important property of the coating. A film with high crosslink density shows increase in relaxation time and in apparent yield strength under compression, and also an increase in relaxation modulus and storage modulus in tension at temperatures above Tg.Addition of fillers reduces the deformation during compression and tension, but also induces a lower strain at break and hence a more brittle coating. The reinforcing effect of the fillers is pronounced when increasing the crosslink density of the coating, especially in the compression tests. The effect is evident in compression even at low amounts of fillers, where the relaxation time and resistance to deformation are strongly increased. The combination of high crosslink density and addition of fillers is therefore desirable since fillers then can be used moderately in order to achieve a reinforcing effect in compression while minimising embrittlement.The study also showed that increased coating thickness will give rise to defects in the coating, especially voids and blisters due to evaporation of water formed during the curing of the polyester powder coating. These defects will give rise to stress concentrations and increased plastic deformations in the coating, impairing the properties of the clamping force joint.The results from relaxation tests in tension were used to create a micromechanical model. This model was used in finite element modelling to estimate the loss of clamping force in a screw joint and to correlate with the experimental results of the powder coatings.In the second part of the study a well-defined free radically cured vinyl ester resin was used and studied in six different geometries in order to determine the dependence of apparent mechanical properties on the particular size and shape of a sample when it is subjected to high compressive loads. Variation of the specimen thickness, boundary conditions and loading conditions reveals that the geometry of the sample has a significant effect on the mechanical performance of the polymer. The apparent modulus and the yield strength increase dramatically when the thickness-to-width ratio of the sample is reduced, whereas they decrease when the friction between the sample and the compression plate is reduced. The creep strain rate decreases when the thickness of the material is reduced and it decreases even more when the amount of material surrounding the compressed part of the sample is increased.Creep and strain recovery tests on large specimens were used to develop a mathematical model including non-linear viscoelastic and viscoplastic response of a thermoset vinyl ester. The model was used in FEM calculations where the experimental results were compared with the calculated results in order to model the trends of the material response when varying the sample geometry.