A Computationally Efficient Thermomechanical Model for the In-Situ Polymerization of a Methyl Methacrylate-Based Resin in a Thick Glass Fiber Laminate

Abstract

A computationally efficient thermochemical model is used to predict thermal runaway and the occurrence of monomer boiling during the in-situ polymerization of a methyl methacrylate (MMA)-based resin within a thick glass fiber layup. The framework couples the auto-accelerating exothermic free-radical bulk polymerization of MMA with the transfer of heat within the system and to the environment. Three approaches are considered for the kinetic treatment of the auto-acceleration: (1) an empirical model, (2) a semi-empirical model and (3) an analytical model. Predictions made via the three kinetic models are compared with experimental data measured during infusion tests with different processing conditions. Processing diagrams are constructed to reveal manufacturing regimes of interest for the production of thick fiber-reinforced methacrylic composites free of voids due to monomer boiling.