Furan resins properties

The inherent fire resistance and low smoke properties of furan resins appear to be related to the high degree of charring that takes place with minimum evolution of volatiles when exposed to fire. 

Because of their favourable price, polyesters are preferred to epoxide and furane resins for general purpose laminates and account for at least 95% of the low-pressure laminates produced. The epoxide resins find specialised uses for chemical, electrical and heat-resistant applications and for optimum mechanical properties. The furane resins have a limited use in chemical plant. The use of high-pressure laminates from phenolic, aminoplastic and silicone resins is discussed elsewhere in this book. 

The principal applications for furan resins are in chemical plant. Specific uses include the lining of tanks and vats and piping and for alkali-resistant tile cements. The property of moisture resistance is used when paper honeycomb structures are treated with furan resins and subsequently retain a good compression strength even after exposure to damp conditions. 

Wood wafers were treated with mixtures of propylene oxide and oligomeric isocyanate (Guevera and Moslemi, 1983). The best treatment was found to be a mixture of 9 1 propylene oxide to isocyanate. In another study, Guevera and Moslemi (1984) studied the swelling properties of wood modified with propylene or butylene oxide and compared the data with modifications using a furan resin, or vinylpyrrolidinone. The best results were obtained by the use of alkylene oxides in combination with a cross-linking agent (trimethylol propane trimethacrylate). 

Furan resins are produced by the polymerization of furfural or furfuryl alcohol in the presence of acids (see Figure 15.8). The properties of these dark-colored resins are shown in Table 15.6. Furan resins have a relatively low heat deflection temperature (80 °C) and good mechanical properties. These materials, which are widely used as jointing materials for brick and tile, are characterized by excellent resistance to nonoxidizing acids, alkalis, and salts but are affected by the presence of oxidizing acids such as nitric acid. The furan plastics are also resistant at room temperature to nonpolar solvents, such as benzene, and to polar solvents, such as ethanol. 

Furfural 69, which can be manufactured from hardwood waste, is used for the manufacturing of a furfural-acetone monomer <2000MI15>. This monomer is then used to obtain furfural resins which are suitable as binders for the production of particleboards. In a further application, these furan resins of low toxicity have been used as adhesives in the manufacture of plywood <1999MI24>. The use of such resins is recommended as it leads to products with advantageous economic and ecological indicators. The result is plywood with good physiomechanical properties when the Monomer furfuryl alcohol (FA) was used as the adhesive. 

Dopico et al. [73] prepared 5- and 6-based furan resins which, after acid-catalyzed polymerization, were subjected to epoxidation with thiokol in different proportions. In a second series of experiments, 6-7% of 2 was added to the epoxidized resins. They showed that all these resins presented a lower flexure resistance compared to unmodilied totally furanic binder. Moreover, the addition of 2 was found to induce negative effects on the mechanical properties of metal-to-metal assemblies. 

Synonyms include Furyl Carbinol, 2-Hydroxy Methyl Furan, 2-Furan Methanol, Furfuryl alcohol resin. Furan resin, FA resin, Poly(furfuryl alcohol). Prepolymers of FA. It is a raw material for organic synthesis, producing levulic acid, resin of various furane kinds in different properties, furfuryl alcohol urea formal resin and phenolic resin. It is a fine solvent for furane resin and oil varnish and pigment as well as used in rocket fuel. It is also used in the production of synthetic fibers, rubber, agricultural chemicals and foundry products. Furfuryl alcohol resins are derivatives of agricultural waste products and complex polymers that are formed in a condensation reaction that occurs when the furfuryl alcohol is acidified. The resins have low viscosity with an odor of furfuryl alcohol. The resin systems are highly reactive and can be catalyzed using a variety of active and latent acidic catalysts. When thermoset, the resins produce polymers that are heat resistant and extremely corrosion resistant to acids, bases and solvents. 

On account of their technological properties furan resin sands are more and more often applied in ferrous alloys casting, especially cast iron. However, due to the environment protection and the care concerning the work conditions in foundry plants producers of these resins are forced to look for more ecological solutions. Activities within tins scope concentrate on two problems [6] ... 

Corrosion Resistant Fiber-Reinforced Plastic (FRP). Fiber glass reinforcement bonded with furfuryl alcohol thermosetting resias provides plastics with unique properties. Excellent resistance to corrosion and heat distortion coupled with low flame spread and low smoke emission are characteristics that make them valuable as laminating resins with fiber glass (75,76). Another valuable property of furan FRP is its strength at elevated temperature. Hand-layup, spray-up, and filament-win ding techniques are employed to produce an array of corrosion-resistant equipment, pipes, tanks, vats, ducts, scmbbers, stacks, and reaction vessels for industrial appHcations throughout the world. 

The highest mechanical strengths are usually obtained when the fibre is used in fine fabric form but for many purposes the fibres may be used in mat form, particularly glass fibre. The chemical properties of the laminates are largely determined by the nature of the polymer but capillary attraction along the fibre-resin interface can occur when some of these interfaces are exposed at a laminate surface. In such circumstances the resistance of both reinforcement and matrix must be considered when assessing the suitability of a laminate for use in chemical plant. Glass fibres are most commonly used for chemical plant, in conjunction with phenolic resins, and the latter with furane, epoxide and, sometimes, polyester resins. 

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