| Abstract: | The mechanism and kinetics of the thermal cure reaction of two cyanate esters (CEs), 1,1′bis(4‐cyanatophenyl)ethane (AroCy L‐10) and bisphenol A dicyanate ester (BADCy), in the presence of dibutyl tin dilaurate (DBTDL) has been investigated using Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and High‐performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). It was found that the organic tin compound (H9C4)2Sn(NCO—R—OCN)2, an active catalyst, has high catalytic efficiency in the polymerization of cyanate esters. The consuming rate of cyanate concentration showed a first‐order dependence on both active catalyst and the cyanate ester monomer concentration. The apparent activation energies (Ea) and frequency factors of both AroCy L‐10 and BADCy were calculated. A mechanism of cyclotrimerization was proposed, based on the kinetic data and FTIR spectra, which involves the formation of an active catalyst and the catalysis of the active catalyst. Copyright © 2004 Society of Chemical Industry |
