The September issue of the Polimery magazine published an article titled: “Influence of terephthalic and orthophthalic structures on the properties of polyols and polyurethane foams”. This publication is the result of the work of a team consisting of Dr. Wiesław Tarnawski (Lerg S.A.), Mateusz Tokarski (Lerg S.A.) and Wiktoria Czernecka (Śnieżka S.A.).

The team investigated the effect of aromatic ring substitution in the polyester polyol molecule on its physicochemical properties and on the conditions of synthesis, fire resistance and thermal stability of polyurethane foams. As a result of the research, it was shown that a greater number of terephthalic units in the polyol results in greater viscosity and reactivity during foam formation. The obtained foams were characterized by higher thermal stability (TGA) and fire resistance (oxygen index, single flame test). The favorable properties of terephthalic polyols, manifested in increased fire resistance, make it possible to reduce the amount of flame retardants added in the process of creating foam in industrial technology. Preliminary laboratory tests confirmed the above assumption, but are not the subject of the analyzes presented in this publication. Undertaking further research in this direction is justified because their practical application is of economic importance – by reducing the amount of flame retardants used in foams, and ecological – due to the possibility of using PET recyclate for the synthesis of polyols.

The link to the article: “Influence of terephthalic and orthophthalic structures on the properties of polyols and polyurethane foams”.

Polimery is an international magazine addressed to scientists, managers and engineering workers of universities, research institutes and industrial plants specializing in chemistry, physicochemistry, technology and polymer processing. Its pages publish works covering topics including: the latest achievements in the field of synthesis, analysis, technology, modification, processing, properties, application and recycling of polymer materials; data on technical novelties and inventions in the field of plastics; information on the domestic plastics industry, the production of raw materials and semi-finished products and the global plastics industry; reports from scientific conferences and industry fairs. The publisher of the magazine is the Łukasiewicz Research Network – Institute of Industrial Chemistry.