# Development of Bio-Sourced Epoxies for Bio-Composites
## 3 Epoxy Resins Based on Itaconic Acid  
Itaconic acid, which is also referred to as methylenesuccinic acid, is typically produced through the fermentation of carbohydrates such as glucose or starch using Aspergillus terreus. Given its strong capacity to replace petrochemicals in the chemical industry, it has been selected as one of the top 12 potential bio-based platform chemicals by the U.S. Department of Energy [9]. To the best of our \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c} \hline \hline
**Mechanical Properties** & **Unit** & **Test Condition** & **Reference \({}^{1}\)** & **AGMP5600/EW250F** \\ \hline \multirow{2}{*}{Plevaral strength warp} & \multirow{2}{*}{MPa} & \(-\)55 & — & 864 \\  & & RT & — & 687 \\  & & 70 \({}^{\circ}\)C/wet 85\% & — & 431 \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{Flevaral modulus warp} & \multirow{3}{*}{GPa} & \(-\)55 & — & 21.4 \\  & & RT & — & 23.4 \\  & & 70 \({}^{\circ}\)C/wet 85\% & — & 22.2 \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{Interlaminar shear strength warp} & \multirow{3}{*}{MPa} & \(-\)55 & 88 & 74.6 \\  & & RT & 68 & 59.1 \\  & & 70 \({}^{\circ}\)C/wet 85\% & 39.6 & 49 \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{Tensile strength warp} & \multirow{3}{*}{MPa} & \(-\)55 & 500 & 573 \\  & & RT & 410 & 510 \\  & & 70 \({}^{\circ}\)C/wet 85\% & 315 & — \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{Tensile modulus warp} & \multirow{3}{*}{GPa} & \(-\)55 & \(27\pm 6\) & 23.9 \\  & & RT & \(24\pm 6\) & 24.4 \\  & & 70 \({}^{\circ}\)C/wet 85\% & 24 \(\pm\) 6 & 22.3 \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{Compression strength warp} & \multirow{3}{*}{MPa} & \(-\)55 & 800 & 589 \\  & & RT & 660 & 456 \\  & & 70 \({}^{\circ}\)C/wet 85\% & 470 & 384 \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{Compression modulus warp} & \multirow{3}{*}{GPa} & \(-\)55 & \(26\pm 3\) & 26.7 \\  & & RT & \(25\pm 3\) & 25.8 \\  & & 70 \({}^{\circ}\)C/wet 85\% & \(25\pm 3\) & 24 \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{In plane shear strength} & \multirow{3}{*}{MPa} & \(-\)55 & 110 & 113 \\  & & RT & 85 & 90 \\  & & 70 \({}^{\circ}\)C/wet 85\% & 77 & 56.4 \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{In plane shear modulus} & \multirow{3}{*}{GPa} & \(-\)55 & \(5.7\pm 1\) & 4.8 \\  & & RT & \(4.8\pm 1\) & 3.26 \\ \cline{1-1}  & & 70 \({}^{\circ}\)C/wet 85\% & \(3.9\pm 1\) & 3.1 \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular} \({}^{1}\) A commercial product.  
\end{table} 
Table 4: Mechanical properties of AGMP5600/EW250F (glass fabric, 8 satin, 47 vol %), a 180 \({}^{\circ}\)C cure rosin-sourced epoxy laminate, under different hydrothermal conditions. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c c c} \hline \hline
**Properties** & **Unit** & **Humidity** & **Temperature/\({}^{\circ}\)CReference \({}^{1}\)** & **AGMP3600/A38** & **Standard** \\ \hline CAI (ay up & & & & & & \\ (+/0\(//-\)90)2 s, & MPa & dry & RT & 180 & 185 & ASTMD 7136/7137 \\ energy 25 J & & & & & & \\ \hline Filled hole & & & & & & \\ tension strength & & & & & & \\ \hline Filled hole & & & & & & \\ compression strength & & & & & & \\ strength & & & & & & \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular} \({}^{1}\) A commercial product.  
\end{table} 
Table 3: _Cont._knowledge, it has been widely used in the production of styrene-butadiene-acrylonitrile and acrylate latex in the paper and coating sectors. Epoxy (EP) resin derived from itaconic acid, designated in the paper as EIA, can be synthesized following the synthetic route shown in Scheme 2. To evaluate its properties, EIA and commercial DGEBA (diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A, epoxide equivalent weight of 182-192 g/eq.) were cured with methyl hexahydrophthalic anhydride (MHHPA), respectively. The results show that EIA presented higher epoxide (0.625) and higher reactivity values than DGEBA. Relative to DGEBA, the cured EIA showed comparable or higher tensile strength (87.5 MPa), elongation at break (7.1%), flexural strength (152.4 MPa) and modulus (3430.8 MPa), and glass transition temperature (\(Tg=130\)\({}^{\circ}\)C).