Synthesis and Characterization of Dicyclopentadiene – cresol Epoxy Resin

Summary Starting from cresol, the synthesis of dicyclopentadiene (DCPD) – cresol epoxy resin was conducted. DCPD-containing phenol resin (DPR) was prepared via Friedel–Crafts alkylation, whereas DCPD-containing epoxy resin (DER) was prepared via epoxidation of DPR with epichlorohydrin. The chemical structure was characterized with FTIR and ¹HNMR. Cure behaviors and glass transition temperature (T_g) of the resulting polymers were studied by differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). The results clearly indicated that cured polymer with a mixture of DCPD-cresol epoxy resin and diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (E51) had higher T_g comparing with E51.