Epoxy resins
Thermosetting resins from bisphenol A and epichlorohydrin that make tough coatings, circuit boards and wind blades; overbuilt in China and now ringed by trade duties.
Pseudo-commodities · Resins & fibres · No. 62
- Single chemical
- Feedstock: Oil, gas or coal
- about 3.2 Mt demand and 3.27 Mt production (2023)
- 5.0 t CO₂e per t
- HS 390730
The world can make twice as much epoxy as it uses, so trade duties now ring the market from Washington to Delhi.
Chart: Illustration: Epoxy resins
Where it comes from
Chart: Map of where it comes from
Bisphenol A reacts with epichlorohydrin and caustic soda to make a liquid resin. Formulators later add an amine or anhydride hardener that cures it into a hard solid.
Three things to know
- World capacity of about 6.5 Mt in 2023 was double the 3.27 Mt made, so plants ran at about 50%.
- In 2025 the US, EU and India all imposed anti-dumping duties on Asian epoxy; India's range from $37 to $483 a tonne.
- Aditya Birla is doubling its epoxy capacity from 123 kt a year to 246 kt.
The journey
- 1 Phenol, acetoneJoined into bisphenol A
- 2 EpichlorohydrinFrom propylene and chlorine, or glycerine
- 3 CondensationBPA, ECH and caustic soda react
- 4 Liquid resinAbout 0.67 t BPA per tonne
- 5 CureAmine or anhydride hardener sets it solid