A Study of the Effect of Palm Oil on the Properties of a New Alkyd Resin

Abstract

A new alkyd resin was synthesized by reacting glycerol, phthalic anhydride and mono fatty acid (palm oil) (Alkyd-P) in the presence of calcium oxide as a catalyst. At the first stage, palm oil was converted to monoglycerides as a polyol by alcoholysis. Esterification process was held at the second stage by adding phthalic anhydride and xylene in the mixture. FT-IR was used to detect the chemical structure of ester links present from the condensation reaction. Physical properties of the alkyd resins were studied in terms of viscosity, drying time and solubility. Mechanical properties of the alkyd resins were also investigated by means of pendulum hardness, adhesion and impact strength. The analysis showed that the alkyd resin based on palm oil had difficulty in drying with the absence of a drying agent. However it exhibited excellent adhesion, which indicated better protection to the substrate (aluminium).