Synthesis and characterization of hydrolysis lignin-based epoxy resins

A novel bio-based epoxy resin was synthesized using de-polymerized hydrolysis lignin (DHL) as a feedstock under alkaline condition. The chemical functionality of DHL-based epoxy resin was studied using Fourier Transformation Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR).The curing behavior of DHL-based epoxy resin with a selective curing agent (4,4'-diaminodiphenyl methane; DDM) was also investigated using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The curing process was found to proceed via a ring opening reaction involving the epoxy and the amine groups followed by etherification reactions at the end. The thermal and mechanical behavior of the resulting DHL-based epoxy resin were investigated using a thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and a universal testing machine (IJTM), respectively. The cured DHL-based epoxy-DDM system demonstrated good thermal and mechanical performances, suggesting its potential of utilizing hydrolysis lignin a byproduct/waste stream from cellulosic ethanol processes for the production of value-added bio-based materials. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.