Only for 12,90 EUR

Fluoro-olefine additives to reduce thermal conductivity of rigid foams

von Rudi Van San

The fluorinated foam additive is a clear, colourless, odorless and nonflammable fluid that is effective in reducing the cell size and the thermal conductivity of polyurethane and other rigid foam formulations. The lower foam thermal conductivity provides manufacturers with a new technology to meet the continually tightening energy efficiency targets placed on appliances and other energy-sensitive applications. When used in combination with hydrocarbon blowing agents, the fluorinated foam blowing additive can also provide an effective method of achieving a favourable total equivalent warming impact (TEWI) or life cycle climate performance in a foam insulation application.

The foam additive, used in concentrations as low as 0,5 % on the total foam weight, is effective at reducing the foam-cell size and thus the thermal conductivity of foam. The resulting foams display k-factors that are typically 3 % to 15 % lower than those formulated without the additive. This additive acts as a nucleating agent during the foam blowing process.

The most significant reductions occur in water-blown foams or those blown with hydrocarbon blowing agents such as cyclopentane. This fluorinated additive displays a combination of physical properties that have proven to be effective at reducing the cell size of rigid polymeric foams. The key to realising the benefits provided by this additive is to emulsify the product into the foam resins prior to blowing the foam. The additive has extremely low solubility in most polyols and isocyanates.

Environmental considerations have been the principal forces driving changes in foam formulations for more than a decade. The foam additive has an excellent combination of environmental properties, with zero ozone depletion potential, an atmospheric lifetime of 1 year and a global warming potential of 100.