Editing Epoxy (section)

=== Homopolymerisation ===

Epoxy resin may be reacted with itself in the presence of an anionic catalyst (a Lewis base such as tertiary amines or imidazoles) or a cationic catalyst (a Lewis acid such as a boron trifluoride complex) to form a cured network. This process is known as catalytic homopolymerisation. The resulting network contains only ether bridges, and exhibits high thermal and chemical resistance, but is brittle and often requires elevated temperature for the curing process, so finds only niche applications industrially.
Epoxy homopolymerisation is often used when there is a requirement for UV curing, since cationic UV catalysts may be employed (e.g. for [[UV coating]]s).