A new type of epoxy resin "EPICLON" has been developed from isobutylene via methallyl chloride and 2-methylepichlorohydrin as one of the works aiming comprehensive utilization of the BB fraction. Dainippon Ink & Chemicals, Inc. has set about construction of a 6, 000t/y commercial plant which is scheduled to go on stream in November 1970.
The reactivity of the epoxide rings and that of hydroxyl groups in EPICLON are vastly different from those reactivities in conventional epoxy resins. Being less reactive with amines, EPICLON shows a low exotherm, long pot life and long shelf life, and is useful for large castings and B-stage compounds. EPICLON has a glycol-like action on carboxylic acids, regardless of its molecular weight, because its OH group is inactive to esterification. Therefore, EPICLON can be introduced by block co-condensation into alkyd resin, water-soluble alkyd, unsaturated polyester, etc., and imparts outstanding performance to them.
In EPICLON series, there are bisphenol type, ester type and ether-ester type epoxy resins. Ester type EPICLON, having low viscosity, shows excellent arc- and track-resistance and is expected to be used as an insulating material. Ether-ester type EPICLON has good compatibility with many other coating resins. Particularly interesting is the high molecular weight resin of this type, which has excellent workability and is useful for coatings such as primer, anti-corrosion, etc.
Concerning economics, EPICLON is not advantageous on the basis of raw material costs because of the smaller scale of its production. However, in application, EPICLON has many merits for cost reduction because it can lead to lowered production costs or processing costs of the final products.