Filled polyurethane foams having tailored microstructures, as well as methods of making these polyurethane foams, are described herein. By tailoring the microstructure of the polyurethane foam, composite materials having desirable mechanical properties (e.g., elastic modulus, compressive strength, or combination thereof) can be obtained.

A process for producing a melamine-formaldehyde foam by heating and foaming an aqueous mixture M using microwave radiation, said mixture M comprising at least one melamine-formal-dehyde precondensate, at least one curative, at least one surfactant, at least one blowing agent and at least one linear polymer with a number average molecular weight M.sub.n in the range from 500 to 10.000 g/mol and at least two functional groups selected from OH, NH.sub.2 or COOH as well as a melamine-formaldehyde foam obtainable by this process and its use.

In one aspect, a foamable composition is disclosed, which comprises a base polymer, talc and a citrate compound blended with the base polymer. In some embodiments, the concentration of the talc in the composition is in a range of about 0.05% to about 25% by weight, e.g., in a range of about 2% to about 20%, or in a range of about 3% to about 15%, or in a range of about 5% to about 10%. Further, the concentration of the citrate compound in the composition can be, for example, in a range of about 0.05% to about 3% by weight, or in a range of about 0.02% to about 0.9% by weight, or in a range of about 0.03% to about 0.8% by weight, or in a range of about 0.04% to about 0.7% by weight, or in a range of about 0.05% to about 0.6% by weight

The invention relates to the use of i) geopolymer and ii) non-brominated, phosphorus- and/or nitrogen-based flame retardants for improving the self-extinguishing properties of a composition comprising polymer. The polymer may be a vinyl aromatic polymer, and may be in a granulate or foam.

A method for producing a polyamide-based resin expanded bead, the method comprising expanding a polyamide-based resin bead using a physical blowing agent, wherein the polyamide-based resin bead comprises a coloring pigment and a higher fatty acid metal salt having 12 to 24 carbon atoms; a metal in the higher fatty acid metal salt is one or more metals selected from the group consisting of magnesium, aluminum, and zinc; and a content of the higher fatty acid metal salt in the polyamide-based resin bead is 500 to 5000 mass ppm.

A flame retardant composition for producing a resulting polyurethane foam, a flame retardant process for producing a resulting polyurethane foam, and a resulting polyurethane foam produced by a flame retardant process are described. The resulting polyurethane foam meets the Federal Railroad Administration, National Fire Protection Association, and Federal Transit Administration fire performance testing criteria for cushioning applications in railway, bus, and van industries.

A foamed thermoplastic material includes a thermoplastic material exhibiting, in its unfoamed state, a particular flammability index, flame growth rate, and specific extinction area. The foamed thermoplastic material further includes a plurality of cells having a number average mean diameter of 5 to 150 micrometers present in an amount effective to provide the foamed thermoplastic material with a density that is 10 to 90 percent of the density of the unfoamed thermoplastic material. The foamed thermoplastic material exhibits a desirable tensile elongation and dielectric constant. A process for forming the foamed thermoplastic material, articles including the foamed thermoplastic material, and an article-forming process are also described.

The invention relates to the use of i) geopolymer and ii) non-brominated, phosphorus- and/or nitrogen-based flame retardants for improving the self-extinguishing properties of a composition comprising polymer. The polymer may be a vinyl aromatic polymer, and may be in a granulate or foam.

A hydrophilic foam comprises a polymer formed from a betaine prepolymer that is a reaction product of a betaine of formula (I) with one or more polyether glycols and a polyfunctional isocyanate compound of formula (II), (I) wherein R.sup.1, R.sup.2, R.sup.3, and R.sup.4 are each hydrocarbon groups having from 1 to 4 carbon atoms, A.sup.? is an anionic functional group, and X.sup.+ is a cationic atom, (II) wherein R.sup.5 is a linear or branched aliphatic hydrocarbon group having from 2 to 12 carbon atoms, or a 5- or 6-membered aliphatic or aromatic carbocyclic group having from 5 to 50 carbon atoms, and b is an integer having a value of 1, 2, or 3.

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A masterbatch composition suitable for use as a flame retardant in extruded polymer foams, and process for manufacturing the same, and extruded foams containing same; the composition comprising: (a) 20 to 40 parts by weight base resin comprising styrene homopolymer or copolymer; (b) 1 to 16 parts by weight acid scavenger comprising an epoxy-based compound; (c) 2 to 6 parts by weight antioxidant comprising an alkyl or aryl phosphite; and (d) 45 to 60 parts by weight flame retardant comprising a non-hexabromocyclododecane(HBCD) brominated polymer or copolymer, wherein the amounts of (a), (b), (c), and (d) total 100 parts by weight; and (e) 0.6 to 10 parts by weight of pH moderator, based on 100 parts of (a) base resin plus (e) water soluble pH moderator.