Synthesis and characterisation of an epoxy resin containing fluorene moieties and its cured polymer

Purpose – The paper's purpose is to optimise lab‐size synthesis process of a fluorene‐containing epoxy resin, characterise structure of the resulting epoxy resin and evaluate mechanical properties of the cured fluorene‐containing polymers.Design/methodology/approach – The synthesis of the fluorene‐containing epoxy resin was accomplished by the polycondensation of 9,9‐bis(4‐hydroxyphenyl)‐fluorene and epichlorohydrin in the presence of quaternary ammonium salt and composite solvent under vacuum. The chemical structure of epoxy resin thus obtained was characterised with FTIR, NMR and MS. The shear strengthes of cured fluorene‐containing epoxy resin were determined and compared with that of cured E‐44 bisphenol A epoxy resin and F‐44 novolac epoxy.Findings – The epoxide equivalent weight (EEW) of the fluorene‐containing epoxy resin reached 240‐246 g/mol under optimal epoxidising condition. The resulting epoxy resin exhibited approximate high temperature performance relative to F‐44 novolac epoxy, much better...