Aromatic polyester
polyols are often used in polyurethane rigid
foam (PUR) and polyisocyanurate (PIR) synthesis, since they offer
higher rigidity than polyether polyols. Herein, a route toward fully
biobased aromatic polyester polyols was investigated using sugar-based
2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) and diethylene glycol (DEG), enabling
a direct one-step synthesis of a fully biobased aromatic polyester
polyol, poly(diethylene furanoate) (PDEF), for applications in PIR
rigid foam. Therefore, reaction conditions were optimized to obtain
PDEF as a processable polyol with OH values and remaining unreacted
DEG similar to a commercial, petroleum-based polyol. The processability
was improved by either copolymerizing 10–20 mol % of a biobased
aliphatic dicarboxylic acid, like succinic acid (SA) or adipic acid
(AA), maintaining the fully biobased character of the polyol, or copolymerization
with phthalic acid. The fully biobased polyester polyols were successfully
prepared on a 100 g scale of dicarboxylic acids. Subsequent application
in PIR rigid foam showed similar density, thermal conductivity, flame
behavior, and compressive strength if compared to the rigid foam obtained
from a commercial polyol. Thus, fully biobased PDEF can substitute
petroleum-based aromatic polyester polyols in PIR applications.
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