Effect of Hyperbranched Polyester on Modification of Epoxy Resins Cured with Anhydride

The synthesis and characterization of hyperbranched polyester (HBP) with different molecular weight are studied. The effect of HBP on the modification of epoxy resins cured with anhydride is mainly discussed. The characteristics of HBP and the morphologies of cured system are determined by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR), gel permeation chromatography (GPC) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The impact strength of cured system is detected and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) measurements were used to pursue the curing process. The investigation shows that HBP can improve the toughness by forming copolymer networks between epoxy resins, HBP and anhydride. Moreover, when the molecular weight of HBP is 1342g/mol the toughening effect is the best, and the changes of toughness are small with the increase of molecular weight of HBP to 3500 g/mol.