Roydon, Kings Lynn: IFS Chemicals is a specialist formulation house with an enviable international reputation for the development of application-specific polyurethane chemicals for a wide cross-section of worldwide industries.
Mercury-based chemicals have been used extensively as catalysts in the manufacture of polyurethane elastomers for the past twenty-five years. However, the high toxicity of mercury has recently led to legislation banning it as a catalyst, and IFS Chemicals has seized the lead in research into replacement products which are far less harmful to the environment.
“Over a period of time, mercury can leach out of polyurethanes into soil and watercourses and create pollution. Underwater applications, particularly seabed and sub-sea uses, were of particular interest when we instigated this research,” said IFS Chemicals Managing Director, Dr Barrie Colvin.
He continued: “The recent change in legislation means that the oil and gas industries can no longer depend on the small number of polyurethane manufacturers which have traditionally supplied their engineering contractors.”
Foreseeing an exciting international marketing opportunity, IFS Chemicals has developed a range of high-performance polyurethane elastomers, which do not use mercury or any other type of undesirable catalyst. They have been put through a rigorous testing procedure, and Dr Colvin now expects them to be in great demand, commenting:
“We have carried out full evaluation of the mechanical properties and processing performance of prototype mouldings; they have also been aged for twelve months at elevated temperatures in air and in seawater. All our findings confirm that the basic polymer structure has remained unchanged, and the beneficial properties normally experienced with mercury-catalysed systems have been retained with the non-mercury variants. “
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