Foam blowing

The use of CFCs as foam blowing agents has decreased 35% from 1986 levels. Polyurethanes, phenoHcs, extmded polystyrenes, and polyolefins are blown with CFCs, and in 1990 the building and appHance insulation markets represented about 88% of the 174,000 t of CFCs used in foams (see Foamed plastics). 

Economic Aspects. Manufacturing facilities for CFG alternatives are just now coming on line. The size of the markets for the alternatives is estimated to be quite large (several thousand t/yr), but it will not be as large as the prior markets for CFCs themselves. This is largely because of the higher cost of the alternatives, typically 3—5 times that of the incumbents. Low value-in-use appHcations which caimot support the cost of the alternatives will disappear or will switch to not-in-kind alternatives such as hydrocarbons for foam blowing. 

In the calendering method, a PVC compound which contains plasticizers (qv) (60—120 phr), pigments (qv) (0—10 phr), fillers (qv) (20—60 phr), stabilizers (10—30 phr), and other additives, is kneaded with calender roUs at 150—200°C, followed by extmsion between clearance-adjusted roUs for bonding onto the substrate. This method is employed for products with thick PVC layers, ie, of 0.05—0.75 mm thickness. The main plasticizer used is di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DOP). For filler to reduce cost, calcium carbonate is mainly used. A woven or knit fabric made of cotton, rayon, nylon, polyester, and their blend fiber is used as substrate. For foamed vinyl-coated fabrics, the bonded materials are heated in an oven to decompose the foam-blowing... 

In the paste coating method, a PVC paste, which contains emulsion-polymerized PVC and additives, is appHed onto a substrate and heated to gelation before fusion to produce a coating layer. This method is employed for products with a thin layer, ie, of 0.007—0.05 mm thickness. For foamed vinyl-coated fabrics, a substrate is laminated onto a transfer paper on which a PVC paste containing a foam-blowing agent has been appHed and geUed. After removal of the transfer paper, the paste is blown. 

Other Uses. Other appHcations for sodium nitrite include the syntheses of saccharin [81-07-2] (see Sweeteners), synthetic caffeine [58-08-2] (22), fluoroaromatics (23), and other pharmaceuticals (qv), pesticides (qv), and organic substances as an inhibitor of polymerization (24) in the production of foam blowing agents (25) in removing H2S from natural gas (26) in textile dyeing (see Textiles) as an analytical reagent and as an antidote for cyanide poisoning (see Cyanides). 

Ozone depletion polential (ODP) and global warming potential (GWP) ol various foam blowing agents. 

The term CFCs is a general abbreviation for ChloroFluoroCarbons. They have been extensively used since their discovery in the thirties, mainly as refrigerant, foam blowing agent, or solvent because of their unique properties (non toxic, non flammable, cheap). However, after the first warning of Rowland and Molina [1] in 1974 that CFCs could destroy the protective ozone layer, the world has moved rapidly towards a phase-out of CFCs. Because the destruction of stratospheric ozone would lead to an increase of harmful UV-B radiation reaching the earth s surface, the production and use of CFCs is prohibited (since January 1, 1995 in the European Union and since January 1, 1996 worldwide). 

In 1974, F. Sherwood Rowland and Mario Molina, who shared the 1995 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Crutzen, showed that chlorine from photolyzed chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) such as CF2C12 and CFCI3, which were used as supposedly inert refrigerants, solvents for cleaning electronic components, plastic foam blowing agents, and aerosol spray propellants, can also catalyze ozone loss. Subsequently, the chlorine monoxide molecule CIO, which is involved in the chlorine-catalyzed ozone destruction cycle, has been shown to be present in the holes in the ozone layer and to correlate inversely with... 

Nonfluorine CFC substitutes have been considered, but few are fully satisfactory. For example, we could go back 50 years to the use of anhydrous ammonia as a refrigerant, but NH3 is as toxic now as it ever was. Cyclopentane could be used as a foam-blowing agent, but it is less effective than HCFC-141b and besides would contribute to the volatile organic compound load in the troposphere, which is the root cause of ozone pollution (Section 8.3.2). On the other hand, supercritical CO2 is emerging as an alternative to CFCs in various steps in the preparation of fluorocarbon polymers (Section 8.1.3). 

A polymer composition and a polymer film, which protects thermoplastics from chemical attacks by various polymer foam blowing agents is made of a blend or mixture of polymers and copolymers comprising (29) ... 

Foam blowing agents Foam-bonded nonwovens Foam controllers Foamed lonomers Foamed matenals Foamed plastic Foamed plastics... 

Refrigerants, Propellants, and Foam Blowing Agents R L Powell Fire Suppression Agents Mark L Robin Organic Fluoropolymers IV IV Schmiegel... 

Methylene chloride is used in refrigeration, aerosol propellants, paint stripping, urethane foam-blowing agents, adhesive, and food extractants. It has low toxicity compared with other chlorinated hydrocarbons and has been show n lo be neither mutagenic nor carcinogenic toward humans. 

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