Environment friendly UV-curable resins from palm stearin alkyds

Abstract

Non-self-drying palm stearin alkyds were converted into UV-curable resins via fumarization and maleinization. The maleated alkyds (AlkM) and fumarized alkyds (AlkF) were characterized by 1H-NMR and FTIR before they were formulated into UV-curable coatings, with methyl methacrylate as the active diluents, and benzophenone as UV photoinitiator. The film properties, which include the film hardness, adhesion, water and alkali resistance, and thermal stability, of the two series of alkyd coatings were compared. In both series, alkyds with high amount of -CH=CH- could be cured with UV within short time to produce coatings with good film properties. Although both approaches, fumarization and maleinization, serve the same purpose to increase the level of unsaturation in the alkyd, it was found that coatings produced from the two series of alkyds have different UV curability and film properties. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.