Epoxy in the context of "Composite laminate"

Casting is a manufacturing process in which a liquid material is usually poured into a mold, which contains a hollow cavity of the desired shape, and then allowed to solidify. The solidified part is also known as a casting, which is ejected or broken out of the mold to complete the process. Casting materials are usually metals or various time setting materials that cure after mixing two or more components together; examples are epoxy, concrete, plaster and clay. Casting is most often used for making complex shapes that would be otherwise difficult or uneconomical to make by other methods. Heavy equipment like machine tool beds, ships' propellers, etc. can be cast easily in the required size, rather than fabricating by joining several small pieces. Casting is a 7,000-year-old process. The oldest surviving casting is a copper frog from 3200 BC.

Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass cloth. The plastic matrix may be a thermoset polymer matrix—most often based on thermosetting polymers such as epoxy, polyester resin, or vinyl ester resin—or a thermoplastic.

Cheaper and more flexible than carbon fiber, it is stronger than many metals by weight, non-magnetic, non-conductive, transparent to electromagnetic radiation, can be molded into complex shapes, and is chemically inert under many circumstances. Applications include aircraft, boats, automobiles, bath tubs and enclosures, swimming pools, hot tubs, septic tanks, water tanks, roofing, pipes, cladding, orthopedic casts, surfboards, and external door skins.

A wire brush is a tool consisting of a brush whose bristles are made of wire, most often steel wire. The steel used is generally a medium- to high-carbon variety and very hard and springy. Other wire brushes feature bristles made from brass or stainless steel, depending on application. Wires in a wire brush can be held together by epoxy, staples, or other binding. Wire brushes usually either have a handle of wood or plastic (for handheld use) or are formed into a wheel for use on angle grinders, bench grinders, pistol-grip drill motors, or other power tools.

Vinyl ester resin, or often just vinyl ester, is a resin produced by the esterification of an epoxy resin with acrylic or methacrylic acids. The "vinyl" groups refer to these ester substituents, which are prone to polymerize and thus an inhibitor is usually added. The diester product is then dissolved in a reactive solvent, such as styrene, to approximately 35–45 percent content by weight. Polymerization is initiated by free radicals, which are generated by UV-irradiation or peroxides.

This thermoset material can be used as an alternative to polyester and epoxy materials as the thermoset polymer matrix in composite materials, where its characteristics, strengths, and bulk cost are intermediate between polyester and epoxy. Vinyl ester has lower resin viscosity (approx. 200 cps) than polyester (approx. 500cps) and epoxy (approx. 900cps).

Carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (American English), carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers (Commonwealth English), carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics, carbon-fiber reinforced-thermoplastic (CFRP, CRP, CFRTP), also known as carbon fiber, carbon composite, or just carbon, are extremely strong and light fiber-reinforced plastics that contain carbon fibers. CFRPs can be expensive to produce, but are commonly used wherever high strength-to-weight ratio and stiffness (rigidity) are required, such as aerospace, superstructures of ships, automotive, civil engineering, sports equipment, and an increasing number of consumer and technical applications.

The binding polymer is often a thermoset resin such as epoxy, but other thermoset or thermoplastic polymers, such as polyester, vinyl ester, or nylon, are sometimes used. The properties of the final CFRP product can be affected by the type of additives introduced to the binding matrix (resin). The most common additive is silica, but other additives such as rubber and carbon nanotubes can be used.

Wood glue is an adhesive used to tightly bond pieces of wood together. Many substances have been used as glues. Traditionally animal proteins like casein from milk or collagen from animal hides and bones were boiled down to make early glues. They worked by solidifying as they cooled or dried. Later, glues were made from plant starches like flour or potato starch. When combined with water and heated, the starch gelatinizes and forms a sticky paste as it dries. Plant-based glues were common for books and paper products, though they can break down more easily over time compared to animal-based glues. Examples of modern wood glues include polyvinyl acetate (PVA) and epoxy resins. Some resins (i.e., glues) used in producing composite wood products may contain formaldehyde. As of 2021, "the wood panel industry uses almost 95% of synthetic petroleum-derived thermosetting adhesives, mainly based on urea, phenol, and melamine, among others".