Principles of strengthening of epoxy binders

1. Two principles of the physicochemical modification of epoxy polymers, leading to their strengthening, have been substantiated and experimentally confirmed: interstructural and structural modifications. 2. The main laws, characteristics, and the mechanism of strengthening of epoxy polymers by small additions, antiplastification, dispersed filling, and vibroacoustic treatment of the oligomers have been established. These methods of modification are based on an increase in the energy of intermolecular interaction and the packing density, which compensate the defects, in the topological structure of the reticulated polymer. 2. A correlation has been found to exist between the change in the supermolecular structure of epoxy polymers and their properties in the last three modification methods. It has been established that the associates of the original oligomers, having a thermal fluctuation character, represent the “precursors” of this structure, which during hardening and glass transition are converted to morphological elements of the reticulated polymer.