Abstract
There is a new family of 100% renewably sourced and high performance poly(trimethylene ether) polyols which is being manufactured in a sustainable process using an ingredient derived from agricultural feedstock. Owing to its unique structure, these polyether diols have many useful properties such as low viscosity, low melting point, slow crystallization rates, high flexibility, resistance to heat and acidic environments. These attributes are ideal for coating applications.
Although hydroxyl-terminated polyether polyols are widely used in flexible polyurethane foam and elastomers, they have limited uses in coatings because of their poor oxidative and UV stabilities that can result in coatings with poor exterior durability. However, by using poly(trimethylene ether) polyol as an additive in the formulations, we have found that the coatings can have excellent performance with acceptable exterior durability. Specifically, we will report the performance benefits of poly(trimethylene ether) polyol as a reactive diluent in both solvent-borne and water-borne polyurethane coating formulations for use in automotive and industrial market segments. Our work clearly demonstrates that coating manufacturers can make sustainable coating products from poly(trimethylene ether) polyols with emphasis on improving the performance of the present coatings while simultaneously reducing environmental foot prints at the same time.
