NEW MDI-BASED VISCOELASTIC FOAMS:
28 March 2006 - Bayer MaterialScience AG

The special properties of viscoelastic polyurethane foams are best demonstrated when they are subjected to load and the influence of body heat. They yield to every contour and distribute the contact pressure from the weight of the body over as large a surface as possible. This makes lying or sitting on mattresses, cushions and furniture made of such foams a particularly pleasant and comfortable experience. The polyurethane specialists from Bayer MaterialScience have now developed viscoelastic foam systems in which the isocyanate component is based exclusively on MDI (diphenylmethane diisocyanate), meaning that new Bayfit Memory foam grades do not require TDI (toluylene diisocyanate).

“This makes it easier for our customers to store and handle the raw materials as compared to traditional systems, where both TDI and MDI were used in the manufacture,” says Dr. Dagmar Ulbrich from Bayer MaterialScience. Dr. Ulbrich, an expert in flexible molded foam, adds: “In particular, our customers will find it easier to store the raw materials.” The quality of the properties is not compromised, and foams made of Bayfit Memory raw materials comply for example with Class III of the Öko-Tex Standard 100.

Bayfit gives furniture makers wide-ranging design flexibility. The flexible molded foam from Bayer MaterialScience enables spectacular designs to be achieved without the need to cut and paste. Further, less waste is produced than in the use of PU block foams. The name Bayfit Memory for viscoelastic foams alludes to the fact that the material does not immediately return to its original form after deformation, thus retaining a “memory” of the body that had rested on it.

Of course, the new grades from the Bayfit Memory program can be combined with the plasticizer-free yet highly elastic PUR spray-on elastomer Baytec Reaktiv. Combining these two high-tech materials produces a foam with viscoelastic properties that is liquid-proof and has a permanent hygienic seal thanks to the impermeable spray-on skin.

http://www.bayermaterialscience.com

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