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Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Polymers

Microwave-Assisted Depolymerization of Polyurethane and Polyisocyanurate Foams with Diethylene Glycol and Epoxidized Tall Oil-Based Polyol

  • Beatrise Sture-Skela1
  • Darta Lina Eihe1
  • Ralfs Pomilovskis1
  • Hynek Beneš2
  • Ugis Cabulis1
  1. 1Polymer Laboratory, Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry, Dzerbenes Street 27, LV-1006 Riga, Latvia
  2. 2Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Heyrovskeho nam. 2, 162 00 Prague 6, Czech Republic
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Abstract

Polyurethane (PU) foams have been widely used for decades for various applications, and this high demand for PU products, naturally, increases the amount of waste; therefore, effective recycling methods must be explored. Depolymerization via glycolysis has already been performed on an industrial scale with different glycols. Meanwhile, our research focuses on the incorporation of epoxidized tall oil-based (ETOFA) polyol into the depolymerization process. Even though glycolysis does not require harsh conditions, novel depolymerization methods should still be investigated, focusing on shortening reaction time, for example, microwave (MW)-assisted reaction. In our research, four PU and polyisocyanurate (PIR) foams from bio-based and petrochemical polyols with different isocyanate indexes (110 and 400) were depolymerized with diethylene glycol (DEG) and epoxidized tall oil fatty acids/diethanolamine (ETOFA/DEOA) polyol. MW-assisted depolymerization was achieved within 5–10 min under the tested conditions, while conventional depolymerization required up to 5.5 h. Recycled polyols obtained with DEG showed OH values of 542–619 mg KOH/g, while partial substitution of DEG with ETOFA/DEOA resulted in lower OH values of 320–450 mg KOH/g, reflecting the lower OH value of the ETOFA/DEOA polyol. Incorporation of ETOFA/DEOA increased the viscosity of the recycled polyols, which should be considered for further processing.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{stureskela2026microwaveassisted,
  title = {{Microwave-Assisted Depolymerization of Polyurethane and Polyisocyanurate Foams with Diethylene Glycol and Epoxidized Tall Oil-Based Polyol}},
  author = {Beatrise Sture-Skela and Darta Lina Eihe and Ralfs Pomilovskis and Hynek Beneš and Ugis Cabulis},
  journal = {Polymers},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.3390/polym18202498},
  url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/18/20/2498},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Microwave-Assisted Depolymerization of Polyurethane and Polyisocyanurate Foams with Diethylene Glycol and Epoxidized Tall Oil-Based Polyol
AU  - Beatrise Sture-Skela
AU  - Darta Lina Eihe
AU  - Ralfs Pomilovskis
AU  - Hynek Beneš
AU  - Ugis Cabulis
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/13
JO  - Polymers
DO  - 10.3390/polym18202498
UR  - https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/18/20/2498
AB  - Polyurethane (PU) foams have been widely used for decades for various applications, and this high demand for PU products, naturally, increases the amount of waste; therefore, effective recycling methods must be explored. Depolymerization via glycolysis has already been performed on an industrial scale with different glycols. Meanwhile, our research focuses on the incorporation of epoxidized tall oil-based (ETOFA) polyol into the depolymerization process. Even though glycolysis does not require harsh conditions, novel depolymerization methods should still be investigated, focusing on shortening reaction time, for example, microwave (MW)-assisted reaction. In our research, four PU and polyisocyanurate (PIR) foams from bio-based and petrochemical polyols with different isocyanate indexes (110 and 400) were depolymerized with diethylene glycol (DEG) and epoxidized tall oil fatty acids/diethanolamine (ETOFA/DEOA) polyol. MW-assisted depolymerization was achieved within 5–10 min under the tested conditions, while conventional depolymerization required up to 5.5 h. Recycled polyols obtained with DEG showed OH values of 542–619 mg KOH/g, while partial substitution of DEG with ETOFA/DEOA resulted in lower OH values of 320–450 mg KOH/g, reflecting the lower OH value of the ETOFA/DEOA polyol. Incorporation of ETOFA/DEOA increased the viscosity of the recycled polyols, which should be considered for further processing.
SN  - 2073-4360
ER  -