as used herein , the term “ arylene ” refers to a divalent aromatic substituent radicals covalently bonded to the phosphorous atom by way of an aromatic carbon including phenylene , biphenylene , naphthylene , and the like ; the term “ aryl ” refers to corresponding monovalent aromatic substituent radicals covalently bonded to the phosphorous atom by way of an aromatic carbon including phenyl , biphenyl , naphthyl , and the like ; substituted analogs thereof means said arylene moiety or aryl moiety is substituted by at least one suitable substituent group selected from the group consisting of straight or branched alkoxy group such as methoxy , straight or branched alkyl and / or fluoroalkyl group such as methyl , trifluoromethyl , alkenyl group such as vinyl , and the like , provided that such substituent does not interfere with the ability of the phosphorus compound to react with the epoxy resin . thus , for example , when r 1 is phenylene , examples of suitable substituted r 1 are o , m or p - hydroxy - methyl - phenyl or commonly known as o - cresyl , m - cresyl , or p - cresyl ; and so forth . “ alkyl ” means a straight chain , branched or cyclic saturated substituent typically of 1 - 20 carbon atoms including methyl , ethyl , propyl substituents and so forth ; whereas “ aralkyl ” and like substituents are characterized by bonding to the nucleus through a saturated carbon and including aromatic structures . such substituents include phenylpropyl or phenylbutyl substituents and so forth . thus in accordance with the practice of this invention there is provided novel mixtures of hydroxyarylphosphine oxides , their use in epoxy compositions and methods of producing them . the curable epoxy compositions so formed are particularly useful in the manufacture of laminates that are suitable in the production of printed circuit boards or printed wiring boards . there is thus provided in one aspect of the present invention a mixture of hydroxyarylphosphine oxides comprising : wherein r 1 , is a divalent , substituted or unsubstituted arylene moiety and r 2 is a monovalent , substituted or unsubstituted aryl moiety or is an alkyl moiety or is an aralkyl moiety ; and ( b ) a bis ( hydroxyaryl ) phosphine oxide of the formula : wherein r 1 and r 2 are defined as above ; and ( c ) a tris ( hydroxyaryl ) phosphine oxide of the formula : wherein r 1 is defined as above ; and ( d ) optionally containing minor amounts of a pentavalent phosphine oxide of the formula : in one of the embodiments of this invention , r 1 in the above formulae is derived from an alkyl aryl ether . examples of such starting materials include methoxyphenyl -, 4 - methoxynaphthyl -, o - methoxycresyl - and so forth . in another embodiment of this aspect of the invention , the mixture is consisting essentially of diphenyl ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide , bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide and tris ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide , said mixture optionally including minor amounts of triphenylphosphine oxide . in a preferred embodiment of this invention , the mixture comprises from about 10 to about 50 mole percent of the mono ( hydroxyaryl ) phosphine oxide of the formula ( i ), from about 30 to about 60 mole percent of the bis ( hydroxyaryl ) phosphine oxide of the formula ( ii ), from about 10 to 50 mole percent of the tris ( hydroxyaryl ) phosphine oxide of the formula ( iii ) and from about 0 up to about 10 mole percent of the pentavalent phosphine oxide of the formula ( iv ). in another aspect of this invention there is also provided a mixture of glycidyl ethers derived from a mixture of hydroxyarylphosphine oxides by way of reacting the mixture of hydroxyarylphosphine oxides described herein with epichlorohydrin . such reactions can be carried out by any of the well - known techniques in the art . the molecular weights ( or eew ) of the product glycidoxyarylphosphine oxide mixtures can be affected by varying the stoichiometry of the epichlorhydrin used in the reaction with the mixture of hydroxyarylphosphine oxides described herein . alternatively , the lower molecular weight glycidoxyarylphosphine oxide mixtures can be advanced with the described hydroxyarylphosphine oxide mixtures of this invention to obtain a desired molecular weight or eew . a preferred method of making the mixture of hydroxyarylphosphine oxides includes ( a ) preparing a mixed grignard reaction mixture including the species ( r 1 ) mgx and ( r 2 ) mgx wherein r 1 , is an arylalkylether radical and r 2 is an aryl or alkyl or aralkyl radical , x representing a halogen atom ; ( b ) reacting the mixed grignard reaction mixture with phosphorous oxychloride to produce a mixture of arylalkyletherphosphine oxides ; and ( c ) converting the mixture of arylalkyletherphosphine oxides to the mixture of hydroxyarylphosphine oxides , noted above . a suitable method of converting the arylalkylethers to arylhydroxides involves treatment with hbr , hi or hcl in the presence of a metal halide salt . this invention utilizes , in a general sense , the use of a mixed grignard reagent system to produce a mixture of phosphine oxides . this invention can be applied to a wide array of compounds wherein an arylmagnesium halide can be mixed with an alkoxyarylmagnesium halide and reacted with phosphorus oxychloride , or alternatively , an alkylmagnesium halide can be reacted with phosphorus oxychloride in tandem with an alkoxyarylmagnesium halide . the generalized approach is to use a main grignard reagent that contains a functional group that can be chemically transformed to a group capable of reacting with a wide variety of active intermediates , and furthermore , using a second grignard reagent that is functionally inert . the relative stoichiometry between the two grignard reagents and the phosphorus oxychloride can be adjusted to affect the distribution of the mixtures in the desired fashion at will . the two grignard reagents can be premixed and reacted with the phosphorus oxychloride together , or the reagents can be added to the phosphorus oxychloride in a serial fashion , depending on the requirements of the particular reaction . alternatively , phosphorus trichloride can be used in place of phosphorus oxychloride in the reaction , followed by oxidizing the resulting phosphine to phosphine oxide by standard synthetic procedures . alternatively , a wide array of organometallic reagents and intermediates can be used to effect the product mixture distribution in place of the magnesium approach . these reagents are , for example , but not limited to : organozincs , - sodium , - lithium , - potassium , and transition metal facilitated routes in general , which are known to one skilled in the art . the invention pertains , in a preferred aspect , to the substances obtained by a two step process . the first step involves the reaction of phosphorus oxychloride with a novel mixture of phenylmagnesium bromide and 4 - methoxyphenylmagnesium bromide . the reaction produces a further novel mixture of four products ; triphenylphosphine oxide , diphenyl ( 4 - methoxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide , di ( 4 - methoxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide , and tri ( 4 - methoxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide . the preparation of these mixtures has the added benefit of being much more economical to produce than making the pure materials , which require more expensive reagents . surprisingly , the amount of triphenylphosphine oxide produced in the reaction can be controlled by the grignard reagent stoichiometric ratio to a near negligible level . this product mixture can then be reacted with concentrated hydrobromic acid in the presence of a catalytic amount of a metal halide to produce the corresponding mixture of free phenols : triphenylphosphine oxide , diphenyl ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide , di ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide , and tri ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide . additionally , the neutral material could be removed by washing techniques if so desired . in addition , the unsubstituted phenyl group in the product , as described above in the preferred aspect , for example , can be replaced by substituting bromobenzene with another aryl or alkyl halide . examples of aryl halides include , but are not limited to 1 - bromonapthylene ; 2 - bromonaphthylene ; 4 - bromotoluene ; 4 - bromophenoxybenzene ; and 5 - bromo - 1 , 2 , 4 - trimethylbenzene . examples of alkyl halides include , but are not limited to , methyl bromide and tert - butyl bromide . the reactive groups for the final product mixture , in the most preferred case , would be the epoxy group or hydroxyl group , which could then be made to react with epoxy resins as a reactive diluent in the co - cure or as a pre - reacted intermediate , or as a curing agent directly . it is recognized that other functional groups could also be used . this lower cost approach produces a distribution of products in the product mixture . the product distribution in the mixtures also facilitates generalized advancement in epoxy resins . curable , flame retardant epoxy resins suitable for use in the manufacture of resin formulations , prepregs , and laminates can be prepared from the forwarding reaction of the stated mixture with a commercially available epoxy resin . the product distribution enables certain physical characteristics to be easily affected in the cured and uncured resin . the properties involved are , for example , but not limited to , molecular weight , viscosity , glass transition temperature , and gel point . the reasons for this are related to the number of aromatic hydroxyl groups present in each reactive species . using a specific case as an example , the di ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide reacts linearly with an epoxy resin in the normal fashion as in the commercially used tetrabromobisphenol a . however , tri ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide can react with a bifunctional epoxy resin as a cross linking agent to give a cross linked thermoset . the presence of diphenyl ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide off sets this characteristic by acting as a chain termination agent . this product mixture reacts readily with epoxide groups in standard epoxy resins without the need of a catalyst , such as a phosphonium salt . this reaction occurs readily at elevated temperatures , in the range of 100 to 200 ° c . a wide range of molecular weights can be obtained in the copolymer product resins by use of the appropriate reaction stoichiometry . representative epoxy resins suitable for use in the present invention are presented in epoxy resins chemistry and technology , second edition edited by clayton a . may ( marcel dekker , inc . new york , 1988 ), chemistry and technology of epoxy resins edited by b . ellis ( blackie academic & amp ; professional , glasgow , 1993 ), handbook of epoxy resins by h . e . lee and k . neville ( mcgraw hill , new york , 1967 ), and ep 1116774 a2 . suitable epoxy resins are , but not limited to , epoxy resins based on bisphenols and polyphenols , such as , bisphenol a , tetramethylbisphenol a , bisphenol f , bisphenol s , tetrakisphenylolethane , resorcinol , 4 , 4 ′- biphenyl , dihydroxynaphthylene , and epoxy resins derived from novolaks , such as , phenol : formaldehyde novolak , cresol : formaldehyde novolak , bisphenol a novolak , biphenyl -, toluene -, xylene , or mesitylene - modified phenol : formaldehyde novolak , aminotriazine novolak resins and heterocyclic epoxy resins derived from p - amino phenol and cyanuric acid . additionally , aliphatic epoxy resins derived from 1 , 4 - butanediol , glycerol , and dicyclopentadiene skeletons , are suitable , for example . many other suitable epoxy resin systems are available and would also be recognized as being suitable by one skilled in the art . it is generally advantageous to use an epoxy resin which possesses on average more than 1 and preferably at least 1 . 8 , more preferably at least 2 epoxy groups per molecule . in the broadest aspect of the invention , the epoxy resin may be any saturated or unsaturated aliphatic , cycloaliphatic , aromatic or heterocyclic compound which possesses more than one 1 , 2 - epoxy group . examples of heterocyclic epoxy compounds are diglycidylhydantoin or triglycidyl isocyanurate ( tgic ). the epoxy resin is preferably one that has no lower alkyl aliphatic substituents , for example the glycidyl ether of a phenol novolak , or the glycidyl ether of bisphenol - f . preferred epoxy resins are epoxy novolak resins ( sometimes referred to as epoxidized phenolic novolak resins , a term which is intended to embrace both epoxy phenol novolak resins and epoxy cresol novolak resins ). epoxy novolak resins ( including epoxy cresol novolak resins ) are readily commercially available , for example , under the trade names d . e . n .™, quatrex ™, ( trademarks of the dow chemical company ), and epon ™ ( trademark of resolution performance products ). the materials of commerce generally comprise mixtures of various glycidoxyphenyl and methyl -, ethyl - propyl - glycidoxyphenyl groups . the arylalkyletherphosphine oxide mixtures or the corresponding hydroxyaryl - phosphine oxide mixtures of the present invention can be applied for use as flame retardants for a vast array of thermosetting and thermoplastic resins , such as polycarbonates , polyesters , vinyl esters , cyanate esters , polyamides , polyimides , polyurethanes , and many others ; but more specifically , to the flame retardation of epoxy resins as a general approach . in addition , the deprotection of alkylaryl ethers generates an alkyl halide , which is a value - added product . these mixtures , containing hydroxy substituents , may be converted to any number of functional groups by those skilled in the art , such as ; but not limited to , ethers , carbonates , carbamates , and esters to modify the properties of the materials to improve the compatibility in a given resin system . in particular , these mixtures may be converted to the corresponding glycidyl ether derivatives or the phenolic mixtures can be used directly as a cross - linking agent in epoxy resin formulations . the hydroxyphenyl mixtures , which may be chemically converted into epoxy oligomers by reaction with commercially available epoxy resins or epichlorohydrin , or the glycidyl ether mixtures are intended for flame retardant printed wiring boards . these mixtures , containing hydroxy substituents , can also be converted to phosphorus - containing oligomers and polymers such as , but not limited to polycarbonates , polyesters , polyurethanes , polyimides , and vinyl esters , which would also act as flame retardants . furthermore , the product mixture can also be converted to the glycidyl ether derivatives by reaction with epichlorohydrin and a base as described above . the glycidyl ether derivatives can then also be used as a co - reactive in epoxy resin formulations intended for flame retardation applications . this approach can lead to a significantly higher level of phosphorus in the resin system . furthermore , the glycidyl ether phosphine oxide mixtures can be advanced with hydroxyl phosphine oxides of this invention to make oligomers . alternative methods to obtain the glycidyl ethers are available and could also be employed . for example , the hydroxyarylphosphine oxide mixture can be converted to the allyl ether by treatment with allyl chloride , followed by oxidation of the resulting olefin to an epoxy group by known synthetic methods . the phosphine oxide mixture , or after being converted to the glycidyl ethers , or after being advanced to epoxy oligomers , can be cured with standard hardeners such as a combination of dicyandiamide and 2 - methylimidazole . the phenolic mixtures act as hardeners themselves . other phenolic hardeners include , but not limited to , phenolic resins obtained from the reaction of phenols or alkyl - substituted phenols with formaldehyde , such as phenol novolaks , cresol novolaks , and resoles . other hardeners include amines , anhydrides , and combinations involving amines with lewis acids . amine hardeners include , but not limited to , alkyl amines , aryl amines , amides , biguanide derivatives , melamine and guanamine derivatives , methylene - dianiline , diaminodiphenylsulfone , imidazoles , ethylenediamine , diethylenetriamine , polyamides , polyamidoamines , imidazolines , polyetheramines , araliphatic amines , dicyandiamide , and m - phenylenediamine . combinations of nitrogen - containing catalyst with lewis acids include the heterocyclic secondary and tertiary amines and the lewis acids including oxides and hydroxides of zinc , tin , silicon , aluminum , boron , and iron . other curing agents include carboxylic acids and anhydrides , amino - formaldehyde resins , and amine - boron complexes . many types of curing agents that would be useful can be found in any basic epoxy resin text . in addition , the resins described in the present invention ( see example 3a for a specific case ) may be formulated with additional additives and fillers to affect cure rate , enhance flame retardancy , and increase physical properties . the formulation in example 6 is intended to be used for the manufacture of prepregs and glass - reinforced laminates for the fabrication of printed wiring boards . typically , fillers and reinforcing agents include mica , talc , kaolin , bentonite , wollastonite , glass fiber , glass fabrics glass matt , milled glass fiber , glass beads ( solid or hollow ), silica , or silicon carbide whiskers and so forth . many of these materials are enumerated in the encyclopedia of materials science and engineering , vol . # 3 , pp . 1745 - 1759 , mit press , cambridge , mass . ( 1986 ), the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference . combinations of fillers are preferred in some embodiments ; whereas in other embodiments , the reinforcing agent makes up most of the composite of the invention , as in the case of glass fabric used in prepregs and laminates for printed wiring boards . additionally , the resin described in the present invention ( see example 3a for a specific case ) may be formulated with other flame - retardant materials as co - additives with the compounds of the present invention to improve the performance . these co - fr materials could be either inorganic or organic and can be reactive or additive based compounds . examples of inorganic additive type materials include , but not limited to , aluminum trihydrate ( ath ), magnesium hydroxide , barium hydroxide , calcium carbonate , titanium dioxide , and silicon dioxide . examples of organic based additives or reactives include , but not limited to , triphenyl phosphate , resorcinol bis ( di - 2 , 6 - xylyl phosphate ), 9 , 10 - dihydro - 9 - oxa - 10 - phosphaphenanthrene - 10 - oxide , bisphenol a bis ( diphenyl - phosphate ), melamine , melamine phosphate , melamine borate and many others familiar to one skilled in the art . the preparation of the mixtures of the present invention has the added benefit of being much more economical to produce than making the pure materials from pure intermediates , which consequently , requires more expensive reagents . as in , for example , one method in the preparation of bis ( 4 - methoxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide , which could entail the use of dichlorophenylphosphine oxide . the raw materials used in this specific invention are based on the relatively inexpensive phosphorus oxychloride and organo halides . alternatively , one could utilize phosphorus trichloride in the same type of chemistry and oxidize the resulting phosphines to phosphine oxides by known synthetic methods . to demonstrate the flame retardant activity of these mixtures , a series of laminates was prepared using various forms of the preferred invention . a study was undertaken in order to observe the intrinsic properties of the reactive phosphine oxide and its derivatives upon the resulting laminates when using a bisphenol a based epoxy resin without the use of any additional additives other than a standard hardener and accelerator ( see examples below , particularly , example 7 , table 3 ). significant improvements in the flame retardant properties are observed with the compositions of this invention . in addition , improved thermomechanical properties are attained , such as improved thermal stability and good glass transition temperatures of the resulting laminates , while offering significant advantages in cost savings . thus in accordance with the practice of this invention a resin - impregnated composite comprising at least one of a filler or reinforcing agent and the curable composition as described herein is provided , which is at least partially cured . for example , the glycidyl ethers and epoxy resins of the invention are advantageously used in the fabrication of prepregs and laminates used to make printed wiring boards . the resin prepared as described herein is mixed with one or more hardener ( s ) and optionally accelerator ( s ) and applied to a glass cloth , such as glass cloth layers 10 , 12 , 14 as shown in fig1 . the resin - impregnated sheets or prepregs are then at least partially cured in an oven typically at 150 ° c .- 200 ° c . for a few minutes ; for example , from 1 - 5 minutes . in order to prepare a laminate of the class used for printed wiring boards , a plurality of prepregs are stacked next to each other as shown in fig2 , wherein resin - impregnated layers 10 - 24 are shown . on each side of the stack there is provided a copper foil layer , such as layers 26 , 28 . the stack , including cloth layers 10 - 24 and foil layers 26 , 28 , is then pressed at elevated temperatures in a press for an hour or more to produce a consolidated laminate 30 . laminate 30 thus includes a plurality of fused layers 10 - 24 of the resin - impregnated glass fabric . if so desired , more or fewer layers of prepregs or foil may be used depending on the desired structure . in another embodiment of this invention , there is also provided a novel bis ( hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide of the formula : specific examples of di ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl )( aryl or alkyl ) bisphenols , as disclosed herein include di ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl )- α - naphthylphosphine oxide , di ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl )- β - naphthylphosphine oxide , di ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl )- tert - butylphosphine oxide , di ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl )- 2 , 4 , 5 - trimethylphenylphosphine oxide , di ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl )- 4 - phenoxyphenylphosphine oxide and di ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl )- p - tolylphosphine oxide . in another aspect of this embodiment of the invention , the bisphenols as described herein can also be converted to the corresponding bis - glycidyl ethers by way of reaction with epichlorohydrin in the presence of base as described hereinabove . both the bisphenols and their bis - glycidyl ethers are suitable in the formation of curable epoxy formulations as described herein , which are further employed in the formation of fire retardant laminates as described herein . this invention is further illustrated by the following examples , which are provided for illustration purposes and in no way limit the scope of the present invention . a slurry of magnesium ( 133 . 7 g , 5 . 50 mol ), tetrahydrofuran ( 988 g ), and 1 , 2 - dibromoethane ( 0 . 1 g , 0 . 5 mmol ) was refluxed for 20 min . under a blanket of nitrogen . 4 - bromoanisole ( 1002 g , 5 . 357 mol ) was added by drop over 6 h at a rate to maintain 70 ° c . the reaction mixture was heated for an additional hour . dichlorophenylphosphine oxide ( 479 . 4 g , 2 . 459 mol ) was added by drop to maintain a temperature of 35 ° c . over 5 h . the reaction mixture was worked up to give bis ( 4 - methoxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide ( 770 . 8 g , 93 % yield ) as a viscous amber oil . 31 p nmr : ( d 6 - dmso ) δ 30 . 2 ( s ). bis ( 4 - methoxyphenyl ) phenyl phosphine oxide ( 1 . 77 g , 5 . 2 mmol ) and hydrobromic acid ( 31 . 0 g , 48 %, 0 . 18 mol ) were stirred at 123 ° c . for 21 h . the flask was fitted with a sodium sulfite scrubber for containment of methyl bromide . the reaction mixture was worked up to give the product as a tan powder ( 1 . 0 g , 62 % yield ). 31 p nmr : ( d 6 - dmso ) δ 27 . 9 ( s ). a reaction flask under nitrogen containing magnesium turnings ( 223 . 9 g , 9 . 21 mol ) and 1950 ml thf was charged with 1 drop of 1 , 2 - dibromoethane and heated to reflux for 1 h . heating was removed and p - bromoanisole ( 1683 g , 9 . 00 mol ) was added dropwise at a rate to maintain reflux . after holding the reaction mixture overnight , pocl 3 ( 460 . 0 g , 3 . 00 mol ) was added slowly over 2 h at 50 - 79 ° c . and the resulting mixture was held overnight at 50 ° c . the product was isolated by aqueous workup to give 984 . 5 g of tris ( 4 - methoxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide ( 89 . 0 % yield ). recrystallized analytical specimen ( from ethyl acetate ): mp 145 . 2 ° c . ( dsc ), lit . 143 - 144 ° c . ( j . org . chem . 1960 , 25 , 2001 ). a reaction flask containing tris ( 4 - methoxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide ( 973 . 2 g ) was charged with 48 % aq hbr ( 2250 ml ) and kbr ( 126 . 1 g ). the flask was fitted with a sodium sulfite scrubber for containment of methyl bromide . the reaction mixture was heated to reflux ( 114 ° c .) and maintained at reflux until complete based on hplc analysis . the product was worked up to give 558 . 5 g of tris ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide ( 31 p nmr ( d 6 - dmso ): δ 27 . 6 ( s ); 1 h nmr ( d 6 - dmso ): δ 10 . 9 ( s , 3h ), 7 . 38 ( m , 6h ), 6 . 84 ( m , 6h )). following the procedures as set out in example 1a various methoxyaryl phosphine oxides of this invention are prepared employing the starting materials as summarized below : magnesium 133 . 7 g , 5 . 50 mol thf 988 g 1 , 2 - dibromoethane 0 . 1 g , 0 . 5 mmol 4 - bromoanisole 1002 g , 5 . 357 mol dichloro ( 1 - naphthyl ) phosphine oxide ( 612 . 5 g , 2 . 5 mol ) magnesium 133 . 7 g , 5 . 50 mol thf 988 g 1 , 2 - dibromoethane 0 . 1 g , 0 . 5 mmol 4 - bromoanisole 1002 g , 5 . 357 mol dichloro ( 2 - naphthyl ) phosphine oxide ( 612 . 5 g , 2 . 5 mol ) magnesium 133 . 7 g , 5 . 50 mol thf 988 g 1 , 2 - dibromoethane 0 . 1 g , 0 . 5 mmol 4 - bromoanisole 1002 g , 5 . 357 mol dichloro ( 4 - methylphenyl ) phosphine oxide ( 522 . 5 g , 2 . 5 mol ) magnesium 133 . 7 g , 5 . 50 mol thf 988 g 1 , 2 - dibromoethane 0 . 1 g , 0 . 5 mmol 4 - bromoanisole 1002 g , 5 . 357 mol dichloro -( 2 , 4 , 5 - trimethylphenyl ) phosphine oxide ( 592 . 7 g , 2 . 5 mol ) magnesium 133 . 7 g , 5 . 50 mol thf 988 g 1 , 2 - dibromoethane 0 . 1 g , 0 . 5 mmol 4 - bromoanisole 1002 g , 5 . 357 mol dichloro ( 4 - phenoxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide ( 677 . 7 g , 2 . 5 mol ) following the procedures as set out in example 1b various hydroxyaryl phosphine oxides of this invention are prepared employing the starting materials as summarized below : bis ( 4 - methoxyphenyl )( 1 - naphthyl ) phosphine 2 . 42 g , 5 . 2 mmol oxide hydrobromic acid 31 . 0 g , 48 %, 0 . 18 mol bis ( 4 - methoxyphenyl )( 2 - naphthyl ) phosphine 2 . 42 g , 5 . 2 mmol oxide hydrobromic acid 31 . 0 g , 48 %, 0 . 18 mol bis ( 4 - methoxyphenyl )( 4 - methylphenyl ) phosphine 1 . 8 g , 5 . 1 mmol oxide hydrobromic acid 31 . 0 g , 48 %, 0 . 18 mol bis ( 4 - methoxyphenyl )( 2 , 4 , 5 - 1 . 94 g , 5 . 1 mmol trimethylphenyl ) phosphine oxide hydrobromic acid 31 . 0 g , 48 %, 0 . 18 mol magnesium ( 1430 g , 58 . 8 mol ), tetrahydrofuran ( 12 l ), and 1 , 2 - dibromoethane ( 2 . 2 g , 0 . 012 mol ) were stirred under nitrogen for 1 h . the mixture was then heated to reflux and then the heating stopped . bromobenzene ( 3000 g , 19 . 1 mol ) and 4 - bromoanisole ( 7150 g , 38 . 2 mol ) were added consecutively at a rate to maintain a slow reflux ( 67 ° c .) over a period of 4 h . the reaction mixture was then held for a further 5 h at 70 ° c . phosphorus oxychloride ( 2930 g , 19 . 1 mol ) was added at a rate to maintain a temperature of 70 ° c . ( 5 h ). the reaction was then held at 70 ° c . for a further 5 h . the reaction mixture was quenched and worked up to give the product mixture ( 5772 g , 89 %) as an amber colored oil . 31 p nmr : ( d 6 - dmso ) δ 26 . 9 ( s , 6 %), 26 . 8 ( s , 23 %), 26 . 6 ( s , 44 %), 26 . 5 ( s , 27 %). gc ( area %): triphenylphosphine oxide 3 . 8 %, diphenyl ( 4 - methoxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide 21 . 5 %, bis ( 4 - methoxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide 40 . 6 %, and tris ( 4 - methoxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide 25 . 7 %. bis ( 4 - methoxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide mixture ( 2359 g , 6 . 97 mol ), hydrobromic acid ( 48 %, 8344 g , 49 . 5 mol ), and potassium bromide ( 243 g , 2 . 04 mol ) were stirred at 120 ° c . for 48 h . the flask was fitted with a sodium sulfite scrubber for containment of methyl bromide . the lower aqueous layer was removed and the product layer was worked up to afford bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide mixture as a tan powder ( 1601 g , 74 %). m . p . ( dsc ): 93 ° c . 31 p nmr ( d 6 - dmso ): δ 27 . 7 ( s , 24 . 7 %); 27 . 5 ( s , 47 . 7 %); 27 . 4 ( s , 25 . 4 %); 27 . 2 ( s , 2 . 2 %). the mixed grignard reaction was performed using varying stoichiometries of grignard reagent ( table 1 .). the product ratios were determined by use of 31 p nmr . entry 2 was discussed in example text . magnesium ( 1430 g , 58 . 8 mol ), tetrahydrofuran ( 12 l ), and 1 , 2 - dibromoethane ( 2 . 2 g , 0 . 012 mol ) were stirred under nitrogen for 1 h . the mixture was then heated to reflux and the heating stopped . a mixture of 4 - bromotoluene ( 3268 g , 19 . 1 mol ) and 4 - bromoanisole ( 7150 g , 38 . 2 mol ) was added at a rate to maintain a slow reflux ( 67 ° c .) over a period of 4 h . the reaction mixture was then held for a further 5 h at 70 ° c . phosphorus oxychloride ( 2930 g , 19 . 1 mol ) was added at a rate to maintain a temperature of 70 ° c . ( 5 h ). the reaction was then held at 70 ° c . for a further 5 h . the reaction mixture was then worked up to give the product mixture ( 5563 . 8 g , 83 %) as an amber colored oil upon concentration . 31 p nmr : ( d 6 - dmso ) δ 27 . 3 ( s ), 27 . 1 ( s ), 26 . 9 ( s ), 26 . 9 ( s ), 26 . 7 ( s ). gc ( area %): tris ( 4 - methylphenyl ) phosphine oxide 3 . 8 %, bis ( 4 - methylphenyl )( 4 - methoxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide 21 . 0 %, bis ( 4 - methoxy - phenyl )( 4 - methylphenyl ) phosphine oxide 39 . 4 %, and tris ( 4 - methoxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide 25 . 1 %. a mixture of bis ( 4 - methoxyphenyl )( 4 - methylphenyl ) phosphine oxide mixture ( 470 . 2 g , 1 . 33 mol ), hydrobromic acid ( 1458 . 1 g , 48 %, 8 . 65 mol ), and potassium bromide ( 45 . 0 g , 0 . 378 mol ) were stirred for 112 h at 110 ° c . the flask was fitted with a sodium sulfite scrubber for containment of methyl bromide . the lower aqueous layer was removed and the molten product layer was worked up to give bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl )-( 4 - methylphenyl ) phosphine oxide mixture as a tan powder ( 292 . 8 g , 77 % yield ). m . p . ( dsc ): 142 . 5 ° c . 31 p nmr ( d 6 - dmso ): 28 . 33 ( s , 90 . 1 %), 28 . 14 ( s , 9 . 86 %). lc ( area %, thf : mecn : water , 5 : 15 : 30 ): 16 . 2 , 48 . 9 , 20 . 1 . a reaction flask under nitrogen containing magnesium turnings ( 120 g , 4 . 94 mol ) and 412 ml thf was charged with 0 . 5 g of 1 , 2 - dibromoethane and heated to reflux for 1 h . a separate flask was charged with 5 - bromo - 1 , 2 , 4 - trimethylbenzene ( 300 g , 1 . 51 mol ), dissolved in 568 ml of thf . the heat was removed from the first flask and the 5 - bromo - 1 , 2 , 4 - trimethylbenzene solution was added dropwise at a rate to maintain reflux . 4 - bromoanisole ( 536 . 7 g , 3 . 01 mol ) was then added over 1 . 5 h at 75 ° c . reaction temperature . after holding the reaction mixture overnight , pocl 3 ( 231 g , 1 . 51 mol ) was added dropwise at 40 - 80 ° c . the product mixture was isolated by aqueous workup to give 453 . 6 g ( 79 % yield ) of product mixture as a viscous liquid . the structure was consistent with nmr data . a reaction flask containing the bis ( 4 - methoxyphenyl )- 2 , 4 , 5 - trimethylphenylphosphine . oxide mixture ( 443 . 7 g ) was charged with 48 % aq . hbr ( 934 ml ) and kbr ( 59 . 5 g ). the flask was fitted with a sodium sulfite scrubber for containment of methyl bromide . the reaction mixture was heated to reflux ( 118 ° c .) and maintained at reflux until complete based on hplc analysis . the molten product was worked up to give 283 . 3 g of bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl )- 2 , 4 , 5 - trimethylphenylphosphine oxide mixture as a cream solid ( 68 . 9 % yield ). the ratio of products in the mixture based on 31 p nmr was 39 % tris ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide , 49 % bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl )- 2 , 4 , 5 - trimethylphenylphosphine oxide , 11 % di - 2 , 4 , 5 - trimethylphenyl - 4 - hydroxyphenylphosphine oxide , and 1 % tris ( 2 , 4 , 5 - triethylphenyl ) phosphine oxide . a mixture of magnesium ( 125 . 2 g , 5 . 15 mol ), 1 , 2 - dibromoethane ( 0 . 1 g , 0 . 5 mmol ) and dry thf ( 1 l ) were stirred under a blanket of nitrogen at rt for 1 h . the mixture was brought to 65 ° c . and 1 - bromonaphthalene ( 343 . 7 g , 1 . 66 mol ) was added by drop . once the reaction initiated , the heating was removed and the 1 - bromonaphthalene addition was continued for 2 h at a rate to maintain 55 ° c . 4 - bromoanisole ( 623 . 5 g , 3 . 33 mol ) was then added over 4 h . the temperature was adjusted to 65 ° c . and held for a further 3 h . phosphorus oxychloride ( 255 . 5 g , 1 . 66 mol ) was then added by drop to maintain a temperature of 50 - 60 ° c . over 6 hours . the temperature was then adjusted to 50 ° c . and held overnight . the reaction mixture worked up to afford bis ( 4 - methoxyphenyl )( 1 - naphthyl ) phosphine oxide mixture as an amber solid ( 508 g , 79 yield %). 31 p nmr ( cdcl 3 ): δ 37 . 49 ( s , 3 . 0 %), 35 . 32 ( s , 2 . 4 %), 33 . 64 ( s , 31 . 1 %), 30 . 37 ( s , 50 . 8 %), 19 . 59 ( s , 12 . 7 %). bis ( 4 - methoxyphenyl )( 1 - naphthyl ) phosphine oxide ( 352 g , 0 . 906 mol ), hydrobromic acid ( 1474 g , 48 %, 8 . 74 mol ), and potassium bromide ( 45 g , 0 . 378 mol ) were heated at 110 ° c . for 96 h . the flask was fitted with a sodium sulfite scrubber for containment of methyl bromide . the mixture was worked up to give the product as a brown solid ( 267 g , 82 % yield ). 31 p nmr ( d 6 - dmso ): δ 35 . 19 ( s , 5 . 2 %), 30 . 96 ( s , 74 . 4 %), 27 . 16 ( s , 19 . 3 %). m . p . ( dsc ): 114 . 7 ° c . magnesium ( 30 . 1 g , 1 . 24 mol ), tetrahydrofuran ( 400 ml ), and 1 , 2 - dibromoethane ( 1 drop ) were stirred under nitrogen for 1 h . the mixture was then heated to reflux and the heating stopped . 4 - bromoanisole ( 224 . 4 g , 1 . 20 mol ) was added as a mixture at a rate to maintain a slow reflux ( 67 ° c .) over a period of 4 h . the reaction mixture was then held for a further 3 h at 70 ° c . to a tetrahydrofuran ( 500 ml ) solution of phosphorus oxychloride ( 92 . 0 g , 0 . 60 mol ) was added by drop tert - butylmagnesium chloride ( 300 ml , 2 . 0 m , 0 . 60 mole ) over 5 . 5 h and held at 40 ° c . for 1 h . then the 4 - methoxyphenylmagnesium bromide solution prepared above was added by drop over 2 h at a rate to maintain 40 ° c . the mixture was allowed to stir for 2 days at rt . the reaction mixture was worked up to yield a pale - yellow sticky solid ( 135 . 6 g , 71 %). 31 p nmr ( d 6 - dmso ): δ 44 . 7 ( s , 43 . 0 %), 37 . 8 ( s , 7 . 0 %), 26 . 5 ( s , 7 . 6 %), 25 . 4 ( s , 36 . 4 %), 14 . 9 ( s , 6 . 0 %). bis ( 4 - methoxyphenyl )- tert - butylphosphine oxide mixture ( 25 . 0 g ), hydrobromic acid ( 770 g , 48 %), and potassium bromide ( 30 . 0 g ) were stirred for 25 h at 120 ° c . the flask was fitted with a sodium sulfite scrubber for containment of methyl bromide . the reaction mixture was worked up to give a tan solid ( 9 . 6 g , 40 %). 31 p nmr ( d 6 - dmso ): δ 46 . 3 ( s , 31 . 8 %), 39 . 6 ( s , 31 . 7 %), 28 . 7 ( s , 20 . 4 %), − 8 . 2 ( s , 16 . 1 %). bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide mixture ( bhpppom ) ( 329 g ) and epon 828 ( 1318 g ) were heated at 170 ° c . for 40 min . 1 - methoxy - 2 - propanol ( 410 g ) was then added to afford an amber colored resin . solution eew : 460 . 9 . % solids : 86 . this procedure was repeated with different reactant stoichiometries to affect the final oligomer molecular weight and phosphorus content as shown in table 2 . bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide ( 196 . 0 g ) and epon 828 ( 782 . 0 g ) were heated at 170 ° c . for 40 min . the clear dark brown resin was then diluted with 218 g of pgme and filtered hot through a pad of glass wool . solution eew : 454 ; % solids : 88 . 7 . a mixture of epon 828 ( 330 . 9 g ) and a sample of the bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide mixture assaying to contain triphenylphosphine oxide ( 3 . 0 g ), diphenyl ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide ( 13 . 7 g ), bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide ( 30 . 7 g ) and tris ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide ( 49 . 2 g ) were heated at 170 ° c . for 40 min . pgme ( 140 g ) was then added to give a brown resin . solution eew : 521 . % solids : 88 . a mixture of epon 828 ( 352 . 9 g ), bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide mixture assaying to contain triphenylphosphine oxide ( 3 . 0 g ), diphenyl ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide ( 39 . 2 g ), bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide ( 30 . 7 g ) and tris ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide ( 19 . 2 g ) was heated at 170 ° c . for 40 min . pgme ( 111 g ) was then added to give a brown resin . solution eew : 396 . % solids : 83 . 8 . a mixture of tris ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide ( prepared in a method analogous to example 2a , b using three equivalents of bromoanisole ) ( 21 . 2 g ) with epon 828 ( 79 . 3 g ) was heated over a 7 min period to 150 ° c . the mixture to this point was a slurry of the phosphine oxide in epon 828 . in the next 4 min ., the pot reached a temperature of 180 ° c ., and this point a portion of the phosphine oxide aggregated into a polymeric mass . following the procedures as set out in example 3a , various epoxy resins of this invention are prepared employing the pure hydroxyarylphosphine oxides as prepared in accordance with example 1 or the dihydroxyarylphosphine oxide mixtures as prepared in accordance with example 2 and utilizing various epoxy resins known in the art . a representative list of hydroxyarylphosphine oxides and the epoxy resins that can be employed are summarized below : bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide mixture ( 962 . 0 g , 3 . 10 mol ), epichlorohydrin ( 2052 . 0 g , 22 . 18 mol ), and methyl cellosolve ( 100 g ) were heated to 80 ° c . solid sodium hydroxide ( 260 . 4 g , 6 . 51 ) was added slowly over 1 . 5 h . towards the end of the addition , the exothermic reaction was cooled in an ice - bath . the volatiles were then stripped under vacuum to a temperature of 160 ° c . then methylene chloride ( 3 l ) was added and the sodium chloride was removed by filtration . after filtration , the volatiles were removed under vacuum at 150 ° c ., and pgme ( 258 g ) was added to give an amber resin . solution eew : 407 . 0 . % solids : 88 . heat a mixture of tris ( 2 - hydroxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide ( 198 . 2 g , 0 . 607 mol ), epichlorohydrin ( 674 . 0 g , 7 . 28 mol ), and methyl cellosolve ( 75 g ) to 80 ° c . add solid sodium hydroxide ( 76 . 4 g , 1 . 91 ) slowly over 1 . 5 h . moderate the reaction exotherm by cooling the reaction mixture in an ice - bath . remove the volatiles under vacuum at a temperature of 160 ° c . then add methylene chloride ( 3 l ) and remove sodium chloride by filtration . after filtration , remove the volatiles under vacuum at 150 ° c . and isolate the title compound . following the procedures as set out in example 4a various glycidoxyaryl phosphine oxides and mixtures are prepared employing the pure hydroxyarylphosphine oxides as prepared in accordance with example 1 or the dihydroxyarylphosphine oxide mixtures as prepared in accordance with example 2 , the glycidyl ethers thus prepared are summarized below : bis ( 4 - glycidoxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide tris ( 4 - glycidoxyphenyl ) phosphine oxide bis ( 4 - glycidoxyphenyl )( 2 - naphthyl ) phosphine oxide bis ( 4 - glycidoxyphenyl )( 1 - naphthyl ) phosphine oxide bis ( 4 - glycidoxyphenyl )( 4 - methylphenyl ) phosphine oxide bis ( 4 - glycidoxyphenyl )( 2 , 4 , 5 - trimethylphenyl ) phosphine oxide bis ( 4 - glycidoxyphenyl )- tert - butylphenylphosphine oxide bis ( 4 - glycidoxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide mixture bis ( 4 - glycidoxyphenyl )( 4 - methylphenyl ) phosphine oxide mixture bis ( 4 - glycidoxyphenyl )- 2 , 4 , 5 - trimethylphenylphosphine oxide mixture bis ( 4 - glycidoxyphenyl )( 1 - naphthyl ) phosphine oxide mixture bis ( 4 - glycidoxyphenyl )( 2 - naphthyl ) phosphine oxide mixture bis ( 4 - glycidoxyphenyl )- tert - butylphosphine oxide mixture bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide mixture ( 120 g , 0 . 387 mol ), epichlorohydrin ( 256 g , 2 . 77 mol ), and methyl cellosolve ( 13 g ) were heated to 80 ° c . solid sodium hydroxide ( 32 . 6 g , 0 . 815 mol ) was added slowly over an hour and a half . towards the end of the addition , the reaction exothermed and had to be cooled in an ice - bath . then 500 ml of methylene chloride was added and the sodium chloride was removed by filtration . the organics were stripped under vacuum to 150 ° c . bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenyl ) phenylphosphine oxide ( 25 . 8 g , 0 . 0831 mol ) was then added and held at 180 ° c . for 30 min . the resin was then diluted with 56 g of pgme . solution eew : 610 . % solids : 83 . following the procedures as set out in example 5 various glycidoxyaryl phosphine oxides and mixtures are prepared employing the pure hydroxyarylphosphine oxides as prepared in accordance with example 1 or the dihydroxyarylphosphine oxide mixtures as prepared in accordance with example 2 , the glycidyl ethers thus prepared are treated with one or more of the pure hydroxyarylphosphine oxides of example 1 or the dihydroxyarylphosphine oxide mixtures of example 2 to form various epoxy resins of this invention . to a 32 oz glass jar 211 g ( 100 phr ) of epoxy resin solids , prepared as described in example 3a , 5 . 67 g ( 2 . 7 phr ) dicyandiamide , 0 . 1 g 2 - methylimidazole ( 0 . 05 phr ), and 35 g dimethylformamide ( 17 phr ) was added and stirred vigorously for 15 min and then allowed to sit at 25 ° c . for 24 hours . several plies of glass cloth ( 12 in 2 , 7628 style ) were individually coated with the above varnish . the impregnated sheets were then held into a laboratory oven at a temperature of 170 ° c . for 3 minutes to form the prepregs . then eight of the prepreg plies were stacked together with two sheets of copper foil on either side and pressed together in a hydraulic press for 1 . 2 hours at 205 ° c . to produce a consolidated laminate . following the procedures of example 6 and employing the various other epoxy resins of examples 3 , 4 or 5 , various other epoxy laminates of this invention are prepared . this example 7 demonstrates the flame - retardant activity of various phosphine oxide mixtures of the present invention . in this example 7 , a series of laminates was prepared using a few of the preferred embodiments of the invention as described hereinabove . the epoxy laminates were prepared following the procedures as set forth in example 6 . the laminates so formed were tested for their t g , for thermal properties according to tga , for combustibility according to ul 94 , and time taken to delaminate at 260 ° c . according to the t - 260 test . table 3 summarizes these thermomechanical properties of various laminates formed in accordance with the procedures of example 6 and employing the phosphine oxides formed in accordance with examples 3a , 3c , 3d and 3e . a the solvents n , n - dimethylformamide and dowanol pm ( 1 - methoxy - 2 - propanol ) were used to dissolve the materials and the hardeners were used at the levels indicated ( see example 7 ). b samples 3a , 3d , and 3e gave self - extinguishing flames with only approximately one - third of the coupon being consumed at the edges only . sample 3c burned to the clamp at the edges only . according to prior art ( jp 186186a ), the pure bis ( 4 - hydroxyphenlyl ) phenylphosphine oxide displayed flame retardant properties when used with a novolak epoxy resin system , giving a v - 0 in the ul - 94 test . the table 3 data in this study compares the relative flame retardant activity of the corresponding mixture material with the pure bis compound using a simple formulation based on the bisphenol a diglycidyl ether , which is known to be more difficult to flame - retard . noteworthy observations are that higher levels of the trishydroxy did not impact the tg , but a higher level of monohydroxy does . the mixtures demonstrated improved inherent flame retardant properties vs . the pure bis material , as evidenced by the self - extinguishing nature in the ul - 94 test and the relative burn times . the mixture is comparable to the pure bis with regards to the tg . high thermal stability is apparent as evidenced by the high values obtained in the tga and t - 260 analyses . although the invention has been illustrated by certain of the preceding examples , it is not to be construed as being limited thereby ; but rather , the invention encompasses the generic area as hereinbefore disclosed . various modifications and embodiments can be made without departing from the spirit and scope thereof .