Advertisement
Published in:
01-04-2025 | Original Paper
The effects of ether, ester, carbonate polyol and hydrophilic group contents on the mechanical properties and abrasion resistance of solvent-free water-based polyurethane foam
Authors: Wun-Syu Zeng, Da-Kong Lee, Yong-Shen Luo, Syang-Peng Rwei
Published in: Journal of Polymer Research | Issue 4/2025
Log inActivate our intelligent search to find suitable subject content or patents.
Select sections of text to find matching patents with Artificial Intelligence. powered by
Select sections of text to find additional relevant content using AI-assisted search. powered by (Link opens in a new window)
Abstract
The article investigates the effects of ether, ester, carbonate polyol, and hydrophilic group contents on the mechanical properties and abrasion resistance of solvent-free water-based polyurethane foam. Polyurethane dispersions (PUDs) are versatile materials used in various industries, including textiles, automotive coatings, and insulation. The study highlights the importance of eco-friendly raw materials and synthetic processes in addressing climate change and global warming issues. It presents a patented solvent-free waterborne polyurethane (SFWPU) process that eliminates the need for solvents or cosolvents, reducing environmental impact. The research examines different polyol types—polyether, polyester, and polycarbonate—and their influence on the foam's mechanical properties and abrasion resistance. The findings reveal that polycarbonate polyols offer superior abrasion resistance due to their polar structure, while polyether polyols provide a balance of softness and toughness. The study also explores the impact of hydrophilic group content on foam density, mechanical properties, and abrasion resistance, demonstrating that higher hydrophilic content can enhance wear resistance. The article provides a detailed characterization of the foam's structure using scanning electron microscopy and infrared spectroscopy, offering insights into the foam's cellular structure and mechanical behavior. The research concludes with a comparison of different polyol types and hydrophilic group contents, highlighting the advantages of polycarbonate polyols and optimal hydrophilic content for achieving desired mechanical and abrasion-resistant properties in polyurethane foams.
AI Generated
This summary of the content was generated with the help of AI.
Abstract
The traditional artificial leathers were produced by wet process. In this process, organic solvent DMF was needed to employ large amounts of water and DMF, which caused serious environmental pollution and consumed a lot of energy for the recycling solvent process. This study used sustainable solvent-free waterborne polyurethane (SFWPU), an eco-friendly foam coating to replace DMF wet-process PU leather products without using a large amount of DMF and solvent-treating equipment to keep from high energy consumption. This study addresses the optimization of solvent-free waterborne flexible polyurethane (FPU) foams obtained from polyols with different chemical structures and hydrophilic group contents based on the foam ratio and abrasion resistance. For this purpose, the study adopted a patented prepolymer process to synthesize SFWPU, which was subsequently expanded to foam by using a physical blowing agent. Diverse polyol with ether, ester, and carbonate types and hydrophilic contents synthesize a series of SFWPUs. These strategies are mainly focused on the foam ratio, mechanical properties, foam structure, and abrasion resistance of FPU foams. This study showed that polyol type did not significantly affect the foam ratio. However, scanning electron microscopy revealed that the foam cells on the ether and carbonate types of the FPU foams were increasingly smaller. For this reason, the carbonate diol and ether diol of FPU foams have better abrasion resistance than ester-type polyols of FPU foam. The hydrophilicity of the foam affects the foam ratio, mechanical properties, foam cell, and abrasion resistance. The 5 wt.% hydrophilic content of carbonate-type FPU foam has better abrasion resistance, which is only 0.25 w.t.% weight loss after the Taber abrasion test. An adequate combination of these components leads to better abrasion resistance and an appropriate foam ratio, which can replace DMF wet process PU leather.
