Comparisons of the cure of phenol–formaldehyde novolac and resol systems by differential scanning calorimetry

Abstract

Comparisons were made of differential scanning-calorimetric (DSC) thermograms of both liquid and powdered commercial phenol–formaldehyde resins. By a combination of the results from analyses under a variety of conditions, such as ambient pressure, high pressure, using freeze-dried samples, and also by direct observation of the resin-curing process in wood-veneer assemblies, the curing reactions of phenol–formaldehyde resins were found to differ for resol and novolac systems. At a heating rate of 10°C/min, the resol resin showed endothermic curing reactions at temperatures of about 150°C, while the novolac-type resin showed an exothermic peak maximum at about 160°C. Results are presented to show how DSC can be used to differentiate between a resol and novolac system.