Synthesis and Cure Kinetics of Liquefied Wood/Phenol/ Formaldehyde Resins

Wood liquefaction was conducted at a 2/1 phenol/wood ratio in two different reactors: (1) an atmospheric three-necked flask reactor and (2) a sealed Parr reactor. The liquefied wood mixture (liquefied wood, unreacted phenol, and wood residue) was further condensed with formaldehyde under acidic conditions to synthesize two novolac-type liquefied wood/phenol/formaldehyde (LWPF) resins: LWPF1 (the atmospheric reactor) and LWPF2 (the sealed reactor). The LWPF1 resin had a higher solid content and higher molecular weight than the LWPF2 resin. The cure kinetic mechanisms of the LWPF resins were investigated with dynamic and isothermal differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The isothermal DSC data indicated that the cure reactions of both resins followed an autocatalytic mechanism. The activation energies of the liquefied wood resins were close to that of a reported lignin–phenol–formaldehyde resin but were higher than that of a typical phenol formaldehyde resin. The two liquefied wood resins followed similar cure kinetics; however, the LWPF1 resin had a higher activation energy for rate constant k1 and a lower activation energy for rate constant k2 than LWPF2. 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 108: 1837–1844, 2008