Low-damping polyurethane elastomer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11267926-B2
Application number	US-201716346715-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 14, 2017
Priority date	Nov 14, 2016
Publication date	Mar 8, 2022
Grant date	Mar 8, 2022

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method of preparing a polyurethane elastomer, said method comprising the step of reacting at least one isocyanate composition (ZI) and one polyol composition (ZP) comprising a poly-ε-caprolactone polyol and an α-hydro-ω-hydroxy-poly(oxytetramethylene) polyol to obtain an isocyanate-functional prepolymer and the step of reacting the prepolymer obtained as per step (i) with at least one chain extender (KV). The present invention further relates to a polyurethane elastomer obtained or obtainable according to a method of the invention and also to the method of using a polyurethane elastomer according to the invention or a polyurethane elastomer obtained or obtainable according to a method of the invention in the manufacture of a shaped article, especially a damping element, a shock absorber or a stop buffer or part of a shoe or of a shoe sole, for example part of an insert sole or of a midsole.

First claim

We claim:

1. A method of preparing a polyurethane elastomer, comprising (i) and (ii):
(i) reacting at least one isocyanate composition (ZI) and one polyol composition (ZP) comprising a poly-ε-caprolactone polyol and an α-hydro-ω-hydroxypoly(oxytetramethylene) polyol to obtain an isocyanate-functional prepolymer, and
(ii) reacting the prepolymer obtained in (i) with at least one chain extender (KV) in the presence of a blowing agent.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the reacting in (i) is performed such that the prepolymer obtained in (i) has an isocyanate (NCO) content in the range from 2% to 8%.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the reacting in (i) is effected at a temperature in the range from 110° C. to 180° C.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the reacting in (i) is performed such that the prepolymer obtained in (i) has an isocyanate (NCO) content in the range from 8% to 22%.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the reacting in (i) is effected at a temperature in the range from 40° C. to 110° C.

6. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the reacting in (ii) is performed in the presence of at least further component selected from the group consisting of a polyol, water, a chain-extending agent, a crosslinking agent, a catalyst, and an auxiliary.

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the poly-ε-caprolactone polyol is obtained by reacting ε-caprolactone and a starter molecule that is a diol having a number average molecular weight in the range from 80 to 1500 g/mol.

8. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the poly-ε-caprolactone polyol is obtained by reacting ε-caprolactone and at least one starter molecule selected from the group consisting of an α-hydro-ω-hydroxypoly(oxytetramethylene)diol, a polyethylene glycol and a polypropylene glycol.

9. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the polyol composition comprises the α-hydro-ω-hydroxypoly(oxytetramethylene) polyol in an amount in the range from 0.1 to 50 wt %, based on the polyol composition.

10. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the isocyanate composition comprises at least one isocyanate selected from the group consisting of 1,5-naphthylene diisocyanate (NDI), 4,4′-diphenylmethane diisocyanate (MDI), p-phenyl diisocyanate (PPDI) and o-tolidine diisocyanate (TODI).

11. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the isocyanate composition comprises 1,5-naphthylene diisocyanate (NDI) in an amount ranging from 90 to 100 wt % based on the entire isocyanate composition.

12. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the chain extender (KV) is at least one selected from the group consisting of water, a diol having a molecular weight in the range from 50 to 500 g/mol, a triol having a molecular weight in the range from 50 to 500 g/mol and a diamine having a molecular weight in the range from 50 to 500 g/mol.

13. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the poly-ε-caprolactone polyol and/or the α-hydro-ω-hydroxypoly(oxytetramethylene) polyol have a number average molecular weight in the range from 1500 to 2500 g/mol.

14. A polyurethane elastomer obtained by a method that comprises (i) and (ii):
(i) reacting at least one isocyanate composition (ZI) and one polyol composition (ZP) comprising a poly-ε-caprolactone polyol and an α-hydro-ω-hydroxypoly(oxytetramethylene) polyol to obtain an isocyanate-functional prepolymer, and
(ii) reacting the prepolymer obtained in (i) with at least one chain extender (KV) in the presence of a blowing agent.

15. The polyurethane elastomer according to claim 14 wherein the polyurethane elastomer is microcellular.

16. The polyurethane elastomer according to claim 14 having a density in the range from 0.12 to 0.8 g/cm 3 according to DIN EN ISO 845.

17. A shaped article comprising the polyurethane elastomer according to claim 14 .

18. The shaped article according to claim 17 , which is a damping element, a shock absorber, a stop buffer, or part of a shoe.

19. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the (Z1) component consists of 1,5-napththylene diisocyanate and the polyol component (ZP) consists of poly-ε-caprolactone polyol and α-hydro-ω-hydroxypoly(oxytetramethylene) polyol.

20. The method according to claim 19 , wherein the polyol component (ZP) comprises 15-25% by weight of α-hydro-ω-hydroxy-poly(oxytetramethylene).

Assignees

• Basf Se

Inventors

• Poppenberg Johannes
• Meier Waldemar
• Tepper Christina
• Susoff Markus
• Petrovic Dejan
• Richter Steffen

Classifications

• C08G18/4277

  Caprolactone and/or substituted caprolactone · CPC title

• C08G18/4854

  Polyethers containing oxyalkylene groups having four carbon atoms in the alkylene group · CPC title

• C08G2410/00

  Soles · CPC title

• C08G2110/0008

  flexible · CPC title

• C08G2110/0083

  prepared using water as the sole blowing agent · CPC title