John J. La Scala1, Philip Myers1, Yong Ho Bae2, Felicia Levine1, Stephen Andersen3, John Gillespie Jr.3, Ken Patterson4, Lawrence Coulter4, Roger Crane5, Michael Starks6, Jorge Gomez6, James M. Sands1, and Giuseppe R. Palmese7. (1) Army Research Laboratory, Building 4600, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD 21005, (2) Drexel University, 3141 Chestnut Street, CAT 471, Philadelphia, PA 19104, (3) University of Delaware, (4) Air Force Research Laboratory/Hill AFB, (5) Naval Surface Warfare Center Carderock, (6) Red River Army Depot, (7) Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Drexel University, 3141 Chestnut Street, CAT 471, Philadelphia, PA 19104
Liquid resins used for molding composite structures are a significant source of volatile organic compounds (VOC) and hazardous air pollutant (HAP) emissions. One method of reducing styrene emissions from vinyl ester (VE) resins is to replace some or all of the styrene with fatty acid-based monomers. Fatty acid monomers are ideal candidates because they are inexpensive, have low volatilities, and promote global sustainability because they are derived from renewable resources. This patent pending technology allows for the formulation of high performance composite resins with no more than 20 wt% styrene. These resins have low viscosities suitable for vacuum infusion methods, and have excellent polymer and composite properties. As a result, these resins are currently being demonstrated/validated for DoD use for Army tactical vehicles, including HMMWV hoods, Marines HMMWV helmet hardtops, Air Force T-38 dorsal covers, and MCM composite rudders for the Navy.