Electron-Beam versus Photoinitiated Curing of Acrylate Formulations: Network Formation Without a Photoinitiator, Depth-Dose Coupling and Requalification Boundaries

Electron-beam curing can initiate acrylic network formation without a deliberately added photoinitiator, but that difference does not make an electron-beam process a direct substitute for an optically qualified cure. Electron energy deposition, dose rate, penetration, atmosphere and formulation state determine a reaction and network history that cannot be reduced to a universal conversion from optical radiant exposure to absorbed dose. ER-188 defines a bounded comparison and a requalification framework. It distinguishes the justified absence of photoinitiator-derived species from the unjustified claim that the cured material contains no residual or mobile species.English