One-component epoxy resin composition

1. A method of making a completely liquid one-component epoxy resin composition, which is homogeneous at room temperature,

said method comprising:

(a) mixing a compound that releases a basic component under a curing temperature condition with a polythiol compound having 2 or more thiol groups in the molecule, wherein said compound that releases a basic component under a curing temperature condition is soluble in said polythiol compound having 2 or more thiol groups in the molecule, to obtain a mixture;

(b) heating said mixture, to obtain a uniform solution;

(c) cooling said uniform solution, to obtain a cooled solution;

(d) adding a compound having Lewis acidity and an epoxy resin having 2 or more epoxy groups in the molecule to said cooled solution, to obtain said completely liquid one-component epoxy resin composition.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein said compound that releases a basic component under a curing temperature condition is a urea compound.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein said urea compound is a compound obtained by a reaction of a compound having one or more isocyanate groups in the molecule and a compound having at least one primary and/or secondary amino group in the molecule.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein said compound having one or more isocyanate groups in the molecule is an aromatic isocyanate.

5. The method of claim 3 , wherein said compound having one or more isocyanate groups in the molecule is selected from the group consisting of phenyl isocyanate, 2,4-toluylene diisocyanate, 2,6-toluylene diisocyanate, diphenyl methane-4,4′-diisocyanate.

6. The method of claim 3 , wherein said compound having one or more isocyanate groups in the molecule is selected from the group consisting of phenyl isocyanate and 2,4-toluylene diisocyanate.

7. The method of claim 2 , wherein said urea compound is a compound obtained by a reaction of a compound having one or more isocyanate groups in the molecule and a compound having at least one secondary amino group in the molecule.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein said compound having at least one secondary amino group in the molecule has a cyclic structure.

9. The method of claim 7 , wherein said compound having at least one secondary amino group in the molecule has a structure such that a substituent containing 2 or more carbon atoms is bonded to nitrogen atom.

10. The method of claim 7 , wherein said compound having at least one secondary amino group in the molecule is selected from the group consisting of diethylamine, diisopropylamine, dibutylamine, piperidine, and pyrrolidine.

11. The method of claim 7 , wherein said compound having at least one secondary amino group in the molecule is selected from the group consisting of piperidine and pyrrolidine.

12. The method of claim 7 , wherein said compound having at least one secondary amino group in the molecule is pyrrolidine.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein said compound that releases a basic component under a curing temperature condition is an amineimide compound.

14. The method of claim 13 , wherein said amineimide compound is a compound represented by formula (1):

wherein R 1 represents an alkyl group which may have one or more substituents or an aryl group which may have one or more substituents, and R 2 , R 3 and R 4 each independently represent an alkyl group which may have one or more substituents.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein said compound that releases a basic component under a curing temperature condition is present in an amount ranging from 0.5 to 30 parts by weight per 100 parts by weight of said epoxy resin having 2 or more epoxy groups in the molecule.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein said compound having Lewis acidity is a boric acid ester.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein said boric acid ester is selected from the group consisting of trimethyl borate, triethyl borate, tri-n-propyl borate, triisopropyl borate and tri-n-butyl borate.

18. The method of claim 1 , wherein said compound having Lewis acidity is a titanic acid ester compound.

19. The method of claim 18 , wherein said titanic acid ester is selected from the group consisting of tetraethyl titanate, tetrapropyl titanate and tetraisopropyl titanate.

20. The method of claim 1 , wherein said compound having Lewis acidity is present in an amount ranging from 0.3 to 2.0 parts by weight per 100 parts by weight of said epoxy resin having 2 or more epoxy groups in the molecule.

21. The method of claim 1 , wherein said epoxy resin having 2 or more epoxy groups in the molecule is selected from the group consisting of a polyglycidyl ether, a glycidyl ether ester, a polyglycidyl ester, an epoxidized phenol novolac resin, an epoxidized cresol novolac resin, an epoxidized polyolefin, an alicyclic epoxy resin, and an urethane-modified epoxy resin.

22. The method of claim 1 , wherein said epoxy resin having 2 or more epoxy groups in the molecule is a bisphenol-A epoxy resin.

23. The method of claim 1 , wherein the mixing ratio of said epoxy resin having 2 or more epoxy groups in the molecule and said polythiol compound having 2 or more thiol groups in the molecule ranges from 0.2 to 1.2 in SH equivalent number/epoxy equivalent number.

24. The method of claim 1 , wherein said compound that releases a basic component under a curing temperature condition is a urea compound and said mixture is heated to a temperature ranging from 40° C. to 150° C.

25. The method of claim 1 , wherein said compound that releases a basic component under a curing temperature condition is an amineimide compound and said mixture is heated to a temperature ranging from 20° C. to 150° C.

26. The method of claim 1 , wherein said mixture is heated for 5 minutes to 5 hours.

27. A method of making a functional product, said method comprising mixing a completely liquid one-component epoxy resin composition obtained by the method of claim 1 , with at least one additive selected from the group consisting of a filler, a diluent, a solvent, a pigment, a flexibility imparting agent, and a mixture thereof.

28. The method of claim 27 , wherein said at least one additive is at least one filler.

29. The method of claim 28 , wherein said at least one filler is carbon black.