Methods, apparatuses, and systems for making prepregs are disclosed. A method may include depositing a resin material onto a surface of a fiber bed and forming a number of discrete resin regions thereon. A distance between the resin regions may be measured to provide desired exposed portions of the surface to facilitate permeation of air through the exposed portions of the surface in a direction perpendicular to a plane of the fiber bed during a curing process of the prepreg.

Provided are porous polymeric materials, methods of making same, and methods of using same. The porous polymeric materials include crosslinked calixarene moieties. The porous polymeric materials can be added to a sample and absorb/adsorb pollutants present in the sample. The absorbed/adsorbed pollutant can further be isolated from the porous polymeric material. The porous polymeric materials can be recycled.

A process for the production of high compressive strength microspheres of cured phenolic resins are disclosed. Specifically, the microspheres formed by this process exhibit excellent viscoelastic properties in that the microspheres retain their shape even after applying a load of at least 4 GPa at 2.5 percent strain, and exhibit high hardness of at least about 0.3 GPa.

Processes for preparing polystyrene-phenolic foam composites and precursor compositions are described. The processes yield composites having advantageous properties particularly useful in insulation and fire resisting applications.

Polystyrene-phenolic foam composites and processes for their preparation are provided. The composites have very low density yet retain advantageous mechanical properties. The composites have excellent fire resistance properties and find application in the production of insulation panels.

Polymeric aerogels, articles made from the polymeric aerogels and methods of making the polymeric aerogels are provided. The aerogels are made e.g. from crosslinkable monomers such as isocyanate monomers or phenolic monomers and a filler comprising crosslinkable hydroxyl groups. The filler may be natural (e.g. wood flour) or synthetic. The aerogels and products made therefrom exhibit low thermal conductivity and are mechanically strong. Due to their physical properties, these materials are used as e.g. building envelope components, such as walls, roofs and frames, to improve the thermal performance thereof, and may be used in a variety of other applications such as sound and insulation barriers in mechanical equipment, cryogenic containers, etc.

The invention relates to a composition for the production of foams based on phenolic resin, use thereof, and a process for the production of the composition. For provision of a composition for the production of foams based on phenolic resin, where the said composition delivers improved reaction to fire with, in essence, no alteration of further important foam properties, it is proposed that the composition comprises an alkoxylated novolak, wherein the novolak is produced using phenol, cresol and/or xylenol.

Processes for preparing polystyrene-phenolic foam composites and precursor compositions are described. The processes yield composites having advantageous properties useful in insulation and fire resisting applications.

The invention relates to a composition for producing phenolic foam, comprising at least one phenolic resin, at least one blowing agent, at least one catalyst, characterized in that it comprises at least one acrylate and/or methacrylate copolymer as foam stabilizer.

A fire resistant syntactic foam material, the material comprising the reaction product of a reaction mixture including a resole cold curing phenolic resin and incorporating a plurality of hollow spheres, the reaction mixture also including a solution of a partial phosphate ester, a low viscosity phosphate plasticiser, a reinforcing filler and a particulate filler.