Development and mechanical characterization of a non-isocyanate rigid polyurethane foam

Abstract

The present work is a first attempt for development of non-isocyanate polyurethane rigid foam. A two-component hybrid non-isocyanate polyurethane compound was used as the baseline. Different types of chemical products were used as blowing agents, among them Petroleum ether and high purity Cyclopentane. Furthermore, the addition of organic nanoparticles at different loading content (2, 3 and 5 wt%) was tested to promote the foaming process, reduce the foam density, homogenize foam cells, increase mechanical properties and fire resistance of the final rigid foams. The main achievement of the present study is that non-isocyanate rigid foams with reasonably good mechanical characteristics can be developed using a commercial available compound. Moreover, the addition of nanoparticles during the foaming process provides a mean to control density.