Polyurethane Info
WHAT IS POLYURETHANE?

Polyurethane in our everyday life.

We come into daily contact with polyurethane because the material is found in a number of different types of consumer and industrial products that help to make our lives a little easier. For example, shoe soles, upholstery for furniture, car parts, building insulation, wear parts, wheels, mattresses, sound insulation, casting of electronics, armrests, headrests, seat cushions… The list can be made long – and it keeps getting longer as new uses and materials are discovered.

Baydur | RIM

A modern material that combines design freedom and functionality in perfect symbiosis. A polyurethane with impressive advantages such as different thicknesses within the same article, competes with injection molding and vacuum forming, inexpensive tools and high resistance to wear.

HOW DOES POLYURETHANE STAND AGAINST OTHER MATERIALS?

Castable polyurethanes are commonly used to utilize their high performance properties, such as abrasion resistance, tear resistance, and loadability. These extraordinary features provide cost-effective alternatives for many industrial applications, by reducing downtime in process operations.

Polyurethane VS Rubber

The major advantage of molded polyurethanes over rubber is their abrasion resistance. It is the combination of high tear resistance and a high module that gives polyurethanes this advantage.

Other advantages are significantly lower casting costs, much wider durometer intervals, ozone resistance and the polyurethane can also be pigmented with different colors. With a selection of colors, different parts can be color-coded or possibly match the company’s logo.

Polyurethane VS Metall

Most metals are much heavier than polyurethanes. This makes polyurethanes much easier to handle and cheaper to use.

Noise level is minimized because polyurethanes tend to absorb sound. Polyurethanes can surpass metals in many situations, especially where components are exposed to abrasive materials. Polyurethane’s resistance to corrosion gives another significant advantage over metals.

Another important advantage is that parts of polyurethane are cheaper to manufacture than metal parts. Welding and other machining of metal parts – which can be avoided when using polyurethane – are both time consuming and expensive.

Polyurethane VS Plast

As with the aforementioned materials, the most important advantage of polyurethanes over plastic is their abrasion resistance. This is because polyurethanes have elastomeric properties that plastic lacks.

This leads to another advantage of polyurethanes, namely elastomeric memory. Polyurethanes usually return to their original shape if stretched. Since polyurethanes are elastomeric, they are not brittle as plastic. Even in the highest durometer areas, polyurethanes remain elastomeric.

Elastomer, Solid polyurethane

Polyurethanes are usually characterized by very good wear resistance, high elasticity, chemical resistance and oil resistance, resistance to both low and high temperatures, resistance to weather, wind and UV radiation, non-static, good insulation and sound-absorbing ability. Polyurethane elastomers have properties that in many cases correspond to and exceed rubber. Polyurethane is also very suitable for embedding sensitive electronics in exposed environments

Polyurethane systems consist of the base part of polyol and isocyanate in liquid form.

When molding a polyurethane system, the base part consists of polyol and isocyanate in liquid form. The polyol can be based on polyether or polyester, the isocyanates are usually of MDI type. When these two components are mixed with the help of modern PU machines, a reaction takes place – and polyurethane is formed.

The great advantage of this type of method – so-called reaction injection molding or RIM (reaction injection molding) – is that with the help of various additives you can control the reaction of the polyurethane directly in the mold.

  • Structure & Production

    Polyurethanes is a common name for polymers. Most polyurethanes are made from three starting materials; polyols, isocyanates and chain extenders. Depending on how the structure and mixing ratio of the constituents are varied, polymers are created with the desired properties.

  • Polyurethane can be given different properties

    Polyurethane is one of our most flexible materials. Due to differences in mixing and manufacturing techniques, the properties can be adapted to the desired use, often molding is the manufacturing method used.

BUSINESS AREAS

It is not just the choice of materials, but also the design of products and / or details that determine functionality, reliability and service life. Also seemingly simple applications of solid or foamed polyurethane can - in addition to choosing the right type and hardness - be optimized by the right design.

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