Development of a HPLC protocol to characterize flexible PU foams in support of advanced recycling

IF 5 2区材料科学 Q1 MATERIALS SCIENCE, CHARACTERIZATION & TESTING

Polymer Testing Pub Date : 2025-04-30 DOI:10.1016/j.polymertesting.2025.108829

Jonas Cassimon , Marthe Nees , Matthew Porters , Cristina Moyaert , Muhammad Adeel , Valentino Fantozzi , Lukasz Pazdur , Christophe M.L. Vande Velde , Philippe Nimmegeers , Pieter Billen

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

We present a novel High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) protocol to characterize flexible polyurethane (PU) foams, aiming to enhance chemical recycling processes. The developed protocol consists of depolymerizing PU foam and analyzing the resultant mixture using HPLC. The developed HPLC method successfully separates the isocyanate derivatives, allowing for accurate quantification of both toluene diisocyanate (TDI) and methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) content. Additionally, the method identifies the formation of aromatic amines during depolymerization, serving as an indicator for urea bonds in the foam. Hydrolysis is used to estimate the isocyanate content of polymeric MDI foams, but this does not provide information on the urea content. Although polyol quantification was not yet achieved, the protocol determines the types, polarity, molecular weight, and distribution of polyols post-depolymerization using Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC). This work provides a robust analytical framework for assessing PU foam waste streams, facilitating improved recycling and sustainability in PU applications.

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开发一种高效液相色谱协议，以表征柔性PU泡沫，支持先进的回收利用

我们提出了一种新的高效液相色谱（HPLC）协议来表征柔性聚氨酯（PU）泡沫，旨在提高化学回收过程。开发的方案包括解聚聚氨酯泡沫和用高效液相色谱分析所得混合物。建立的高效液相色谱法成功地分离了异氰酸酯衍生物，实现了甲苯二异氰酸酯（TDI）和亚甲基二苯基二异氰酸酯（MDI）含量的准确定量。此外，该方法确定在解聚过程中芳香胺的形成，作为泡沫中尿素键的指示器。水解是用来估计聚合物MDI泡沫的异氰酸酯含量，但这并不能提供尿素含量的信息。虽然多元醇的定量尚未实现，但该方案确定了使用凝胶渗透色谱（GPC）解聚后多元醇的类型、极性、分子量和分布。这项工作为评估聚氨酯泡沫废物流提供了一个强大的分析框架，促进了聚氨酯应用的回收和可持续性。

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来源期刊

Polymer Testing 工程技术-材料科学：表征与测试

CiteScore

10.70

自引率

5.90%

发文量

328

审稿时长

44 days

期刊介绍： Polymer Testing focuses on the testing, analysis and characterization of polymer materials, including both synthetic and natural or biobased polymers. Novel testing methods and the testing of novel polymeric materials in bulk, solution and dispersion is covered. In addition, we welcome the submission of the testing of polymeric materials for a wide range of applications and industrial products as well as nanoscale characterization. The scope includes but is not limited to the following main topics: Novel testing methods and Chemical analysis • mechanical, thermal, electrical, chemical, imaging, spectroscopy, scattering and rheology Physical properties and behaviour of novel polymer systems • nanoscale properties, morphology, transport properties Degradation and recycling of polymeric materials when combined with novel testing or characterization methods • degradation, biodegradation, ageing and fire retardancy Modelling and Simulation work will be only considered when it is linked to new or previously published experimental results.