What is polyurethane?
Polyurethane is an incredibly resilient, flexible, and durable manufactured material that can take the place of paint, cotton, rubber, metal, and wood in thousands of applications across all fields. Polyurethane might be hard, like fiberglass, squishy like upholstery foam, protective like varnish, bouncy like rubber wheels, or sticky like glue. Since its invention in the 40s, polyurethane has been used in everything from baby toys to airplane wings, and continues to be adapted for contemporary technology. Polyurethane is a substance categorized as a polymer based on its chemical structure. One manufacturers polyurethane by combining a diisocyanate and a diol, two monomers, through a chemical reaction. This makes a basic material whose variations can be stretched, smashed, or scratched, and remain fairly indestructible. Depending on the different diisocyanates and diol or polyol constituents, the resulting polyurethane might take a liquid, foam, or solid form, each with advantages and l
Peter Lord, Providence, RI The Green Guide Responds: We had the same questions as we read the press accounts of this cruel tragedy. It underscores the particular dangers of inhaling smoke from burning plastics, which are made from petrochemicals and, in some cases, highly toxic organic compounds. The foam used in the nightclub fire was marketed as a packaging material, but was used for sound-proofing; it contained no fire-retardants. As for the polyurethane itself, in 1937, the German scientist Otto Bayer first produced the substance while searching for substitutes for natural rubber. Today, it comes in many basic forms including elastomers, coatings, flexible foams and rigid foams. Elastomers are flexible but return to their original shape and are found in roller skate wheels, ski boots, and, as a fiber, spandex. Coatings appear on dancefloors and bowling alleys and polyurethane paint is found on cars and planes. The flexible foams, making up the largest polyurethane market, appear in
