Formation study of Bisphenol A resole by HPLC, GPC and curing kinetics by DSC

The formation study of Bisphenol A (BPA) resole resins catalyzed by sodium hydroxide has been studied by HPLC, GPC. Resoles have been synthesized under controlled conditions: 90°C, F/BPA=1.5 (R1), 2.0 (R2), and 2.5 (R3). The resole with the high molar ratio has shown lower BPA content remained in the final product. The changes in molecular weights of Bisphenol A (BPA)–formaldehyde reaction have been identified by GPC as a result of measurements, an increase in molecular weight has been observed with an increase of reaction time and molar ratio. Curing reaction kinetics of resins as a function of molar ratio have been studied by differential scanning calorimetric DSC technique. The activation energies increased with an increase in molar ratio and molecular weights.