Henkel Corporation

Henkel Kommanditgesellschaft Auf Aktien

Henkel Ag & Company, Kgaa

Vettithara C Koshy

Rajat K Agarwal

Bruce Lee Harrison

Gregory A Ferguson

Bradley L Hilborn

The present invention is directed to a high expansion two-component structural foam that expands to about twice its original volume while maintaining good cell structure. The foam of the present invention is based on epoxy resins. Each component of the foam system exhibits storage stability, e.g., no phase separation, yet reacts when combined to provide a cured material having exceptionally good compression strength and modulus. The blowing system used to prepare the foam produces a foam which is uniform in appearance and is essentially free of the large voids often found in conventional two-part thermosettable compositions, even when a relatively large mass is utilized.

High expansion two-component structural foam

A high performance structural foam is used for stiffening parts such as plastic parts. The foam could be formulated for in-mold use at elevated temperatures or at ambient temperatures for use with previously molded parts. Various ingredients are used to control the properties of the foam.

Method of forming a high performance structural foam for stiffening parts

A two part system for producing structural reinforcing adhesives is provided wherein one component containing epoxy resin is combined with a second component containing a specified curative system. An aliphatic polyamine, an amidoamine, an alcohol and an adduct of a polyamine and an epoxide are present in the curative system. When a thermally activated blowing agent is utilized, the resulting foam is remarkably uniform in cell structure and has improved strength and modulus. Hollow inorganic microspheres are employed to reduce the density of the thermoset produced from the two part system.

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Bloomfield Hills, MI, United States of America

Vettithara C Koshy