Real-time measurement of resin shrinkage during cure

This paper describes a method for in situ determination of shrinkage during cure of thermosets using dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) instrumentation. The measurement technique correlates shrinkage with gelation so that accumulated stress in the cured system can be assessed. Measurements at elevated temperature are possible. The technique can be adapted to anisotropic shrinkage in systems, such as fiber-reinforced composites, by selection of appropriate sample geometry.