Synthesis of Polyurethane Foam Considering Mixture Blowing Agents for Application to Cryogenic Environments

Abstract

Polyurethane foams, which are among the most widely used insulating materials, are generally fabricated by the chemical reaction between isocyanate and polyol-containing chemical additives and blowing agents. Recently, many kinds of blowing agents have been used for the fabrication process of polyurethane foam, such as hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). However, issues have continuously arisen regarding the destruction of the ozone layer due to these compounds. In the present study, polyurethane foams are manufactured using a mixture of water blowing agents and hydrofluorocarbons (HFC-365mfc). These samples are subjected to mechanical tests to investigate the effects of the blowing agents on the mechanical properties of the polyurethane foam within a temperature range of 25 to -163 degrees C. In addition, thermal and microstructural investigations are conducted depending on the content of the HFC-365mfc. From the scanning electron microscopy observations, the sizes of the structure cells and the windows are found to decrease with the increase in HFC-365mfc content. In addition, from the Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy observations, the chemical bonds that affect mechanical performance are found to be more distributed with the increase in HFC-365mfc content.