The chemicals business of UFlex Limited has announced securing of a patent on ‘A process for the preparation of epoxy ester resin’ in accordance with the provisions of the Patents Act, 1970.

This is the first patent for UFlex's chemicals business in India and the company will be considering applying for a global patent in due course of time. UFlex’s new patent will ensure technical advancement in providing a process for resin preparation wherein no waste water treatment is required which is a significant move in the direction of sustainability.

Furthermore, epoxy ester resin prepared by this process will be used in radiation curing or energy curing and therefore curing will be faster, unlike the typical Epoxy Ester resin which is thermally cured and takes a longer time besides being uneconomical. With enhanced stability of coating and its chemical resistance attributes a total of 16 claims have been taken under this patent.

On securing the patent, Rajesh Bhasin, Joint President, Chemicals Division, UFlex Limited said, “We are extremely delighted with the continued strengthening of our R&D prowess. The issuance of this patent is another step in the development of a robust portfolio for our business. This is part of our initiative to backward integrate, using our inherent strengths. Such initiatives help us to have greater control on product quality and supply security. This unique achievement is all because of the progressive approach, years of hard work and commitment.”

Epoxy ester resins are known for their use in coatings, paints and adhesives. Before this patent was registered, conventionally Epoxy Ester resin was produced in a two-stage process. The first stage is condensation which generates a lot of salt that is removed through several water washings, resulting in high effluent generation.

Typically, waste water contains 50,000-95,000 ppm TDS and 50,000-60,000 ppm COD which therefore requires large capital investment for waste water treatment plants adding to the capital expenditure and operating expense of the process of Epoxy resin preparation.

In the second stage of a conventional process, Epoxy resin is converted into Epoxy Ester resin with the esterification process which results in the formation of undesirable Epoxy Ester resin, which has a dark colour and odour.

However, UFlex’ newly invented and patented approach arrests the challenges posed in a conventional method as the Epoxy Ester produced has no waste water generation, no odour and neither a dark colour which is good for fast curing coatings with efficient cost effective processing.

Epoxy resins are gaining supremacy over the conventional use of Vinyl Esters and polyesters in the flexible packaging industry as well as in offset printing.