Cure kinetics, thermal stability, and dielectric properties of epoxy/barium ferrite/polyaniline composites

Barium ferrite/polyaniline composites (Ba ferrite/PANI) were synthesized using in situ polymerization of different BaFe12O19/aniline weight ratios and dispersed in diglycidyl ether bisphenol-A/carboxylated polyester (DGEBA/CPE) hybrid powder coating system. The effects of heating rate, Ba ferrite/PANI compositions and their loading level on the curing process was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) in the dynamic mode. The activation energy of the cure reaction was examined utilizing Kissinger-Akahira-Sunose (KAS) method. It was found that the activation energy of the cure reaction of the epoxy increases with increasing the content of the filler. The dielectric properties were studied using dielectric relaxation analysis over a range of frequency (0.2-100 kHz) at 30 degrees C. The obtained dielectric data were analyzed using complex permittivity and modulus formalisms, depending on the concentration of filler in the epoxy matrix. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.