In Germany, specialty chemicals company, LANXESS, developed Vibrathane 7085, a new, polyester-based prepolymer for hot cast elastomers. It has MDI end groups (methylene diphenyl diisocyanate) and cures with 1,4-butanediol to polyurethane cast elastomers, distinguished by a low compression set and a high tear strength at hardnesses of 83 to 87 Shore A.
“This is a particular advantage of our material. Both properties are usually inversely related, so that they normally can’t be optimized together,” said Dr. Nitin Sharma, expert in the Global Research & Development and Innovation Center of the Urethane Systems business unit of LANXESS in their press release. The general purpose prepolymer can be economically processed under catalysis in short to medium pot lifes to produce elastomer solutions which cover a wide range of demands.
“Possible applications include, for example, die cutting blankets and anvils, bushings for torque rods of trucks, buses and trailers, and robust, noise-damping shaking screens for ore processing,” said Sharma. “This material is particularly suitable for dynamically highly stressed components such as wheels and rolls of forklift trucks.”