Low cost and highly reactive biobased polyols: A co-product of the emerging biorefinery economy

Over several billion pounds of petroleum-derived polyols are consumed in the U.S. annually in many polyurethane applications, e.g., foams, coatings and adhesives. There is an increasing need and interest to develop alternate polyols based on renewable, resource-based raw materials that offer reduced price volatility with a more favorable environmental footprint compared to current petroleum-derived polyols. A novel process is developed for the economical production of high quality biobased polyols by the ozonolysis of mixtures of vegetable oils, e.g., soybean oil and primary polyols such as glycerin. High performance coatings and both rigid and flexible foams have been prepared from these polyols.