Selection of thinner for epoxy-amine system used as binder for polymeric mortars

Epoxy resin mortars are mainly used in the implementation of precast items used in the civil engineering field. The workability of these mortars represents a major obstacle to the development of this field. In order to improve this property, different types of thinners are selected to study their effect on the rheological properties of the epoxy-amine system. Rheological tests are performed in order to estimate the resin gel point and to measure its viscosity during the crosslinking reaction. It appears that viscosity is the lowest for mixtures prepared with methyl octanoate, o-xylene, and butyl glycidyl ether. Methyl octanoate is chosen as an ecofriendly thinner. The curing process is evaluated by varying the amount of the selected thinner using isothermal and dynamic DSC to determine the end of crosslinking. The mechanical properties using dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and tensile resistance testing of the cured epoxy resin with different amounts of methyl octanoate are also investigated. (c) 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016, 133, 43970.