Sustainability and the increased use of renewable and recycled resources in the manufacture of polyurethanes are the focus of the opening technical session of the UTECH Europe 2015 conference taking place 14-16 April 2015 at the MECC, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
The renewable resources session comprises 11 papers looking at many different approaches to increasing sustainability in the manufacture and use of polyurethanes including the latest global developments in the production of raw materials.
Among papers looking at the greater use of recycled materials are Anders Thorsten of Fraunhofer ICT’s Polyurethanes with components made of renewable resources and recyclates and that of Kai Klockemann of Performance Chemicals GmbH, who asks the question Where is the limit incorporating renewable or recycled products into a polymer? Invista’s Richard P. Beatty will also give a paper looking at Aliphatic Polyester Polyols with Recycled Content for High Resilience Foams.
Two papers look at recent and future advances in CO2 -based polyols: Dr. Christoph Gürtler, of Bayer MaterialScience presents Dream Production – CO2-based polyols: Sustainability and Future Research Perspectives and will be followed by Simon Waddington of Novomer Inc looking at Advances in the use of CO2 based polyols in Flexible Foam Applications.
Chen Changsheng, Wanhua will look at Bio-based PCDL: development and applications. Richard Janssen of Reverdia delivers a paper on reNEWable polyester polyols and polyurethanes based on Biosuccinium. Angela Austin of Omni Tech International presents An update on the use of soy based chemicals in the polyurethane industry and Irena Vitkauskiene of NEO Group will appraise delegates of the latest Sustainable aromatic polyester polyols.
Speakers looking at broader sustainability issues in the polyurethanes sector include Dr. Stephanie Vogel of Bayer MaterialScience who will examine How PUR can make your business more sustainable and Shaibal Roy of DuPont presenting on How better performance helps reduce environmental footprint - a look through life cycle assessment.
The UTECH Europe conference features over 90 detailed technical papers delivered in a total of 11 sessions covering the latest global developments in polyurethanes. More than 80 companies will be showcasing their latest offerings for the polyurethanes industry in the accompanying exhibition. This combination of a high-level conference with a major exhibition gives the UTECH Europe event its unique appeal: delegates and visitors can bring themselves up to speed in every significant area of technical and commercial development in this fast-moving technology.
The conference program includes sessions covering all areas of the polyurethanes industry including markets, the latest developments in polyurethane science, and innovation in materials and machinery. There are also sessions devoted to the diverse applications of polyurethanes including the automotive market, flexible foams, energy efficient rigid foams, polyureas (in association with PDA Europe) and CASE (coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers). A special ISOPA session will look at REACH and fire safety.