Cationic photopolymerization of epoxides containing carbon black nanoparticles

The active centers responsible for cationic photopolymerizations are essentially non-terminating, and continue to propagate after the illumination is ceased. In this contribution, the mobility of the long-lived cationic active centers is investigated for the cure of epoxides containing carbon black nanoparticles. Concentration profiles for the cationic active centers produced during illumination were coupled with an analysis of the active center reactive diffusion during the post-illumination period, revealing that migration of the active centers leads to cure beyond the illuminated depth. A kinetic analysis yielded predicted cure times for coatings of varying thickness and carbon black loading, showing good agreement with experimental results obtained for photopolymerizations of cycloaliphatic diepoxide coatings containing a monodisperse carbon black with mean hydrodynamic radius of 29.2 nm. These results indicate that the long lifetimes and reactive diffusion of cationic active centers may be used for effective curing of coatings containing carbon black nanoparticles. This comprehensive approach could be applied to other opaque nanocomposite systems.