Super Low Density Elastomeric Polyurethane Foam Systems ContainingStyrene-Grafted Polyester Polyol and Their Use In Shoe Soles Production

The motivation to develop low-density polyurethane foams (PUFs) has increased in recent years aseconomic issues, reduced purchasing power, and rising raw material costs have led consumers todesire lightweight, high-performance, comfortable, and affordable footwear. Therefore, footwearmanufacturers have prioritized the use of low-density polyurethane materials in their products toaddress these challenges. PUF was developed using polymer-grafted polyester polyol (POP) andsaturated polyester polyol. Branched saturated polyester polyols, were synthesizedusing by thepolycondensation reaction of adipic acid with monoethylene glycol (MEG), diethylene glycol andtrimethylolpropane (TMP). The cell-opening behavior of POP in polyester-based PUF was studiedusing Optical microscopy. It was found that the average of the open cells’ size and their populationwere increased as the POP content increased up to ۳۵ wt% polyol component. this article presents,open cell integral skin PUFs with density range of ۲۲۰-۲۸۰ kg/m۳ and featuring ۱۵-۳۵% densityreduction while maintaining physical and mechanical properties compared to other existingfootwear products. Dimensional stability after curing, open-cell foam structure, integral skin, andgood mechanical properties are some of the standout features of this system.

کلیدواژه ها:

Polyurethane ، Low Density ، Elastomer Foam ، Shoe Sole ، Polymeric polyesterpolyol