Resin

For other uses, see Resin (disambiguation).
Insect trapped in resin
Cedar of Lebanon cone showing flecks of resin as used in the mummification of Egyptian Pharaohs

In polymer chemistry and materials science, a resin is a solid or highly viscous substance of plant or synthetic origin that is typically convertible into polymers.[1] Resins are usually mixtures of organic compounds. This article focuses mainly on naturally occurring resins.

Plants secrete resins for their protective benefits in response to injury. Resins protect plants from insects and pathogens.[2] Resins confound a wide range of herbivores, insects, and pathogens, while the volatile phenolic compounds may attract benefactors such as parasitoids or predators of the herbivores that attack the plant.[3]

  1. ^ "resin". IUPAC Compendium of Chemical Terminology. 3.0.1 (3rd ed.). International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry. 2019. doi:10.1351/goldbook.RT07166.
  2. ^ "Resins". www.fs.fed.us.
  3. ^ "Plant Resins: Chemistry, evolution, ecology, and ethnobotany", by Jean Langenheim, Timber Press, Portland, OR. 2003