Polytetrahydrofuran

• PTHF
• Polytetramethylene ( PTMEG)

Thermoplastic

White waxy solid

Fixed

0.982 g/cm3 ( 30 ° C)

23-28 ° C

<10 g / l in water at 20 ° C.

Average Mn ~ 1,000

Attention

Polytetrahydrofuran by acid catalysis at 30 to 40 ° C in tetrahydrofuran. The chemical name for Polytetrahydrofuran is polytetramethylene ( PTMEG)

Polytetrahydrofuran is an intermediate for the production of textile fibers ( spandex, spandex), which are characterized by high elasticity. Here Polytetrahydrofuran forms the soft component. In addition, one can also produce polyurethanes from Polytetrahydrofuran eg.

Polytetrahydrofuran is usually a mixture of different oligomers / polymers with a defined average molar mass. At room temperature polytetrahydrofuran is fixed, therefore, stored at elevated temperatures, e.g. 60-70 ° C in liquid form, packaged and transported.

Major manufacturers in Germany BASF in Ludwigshafen ( 250,000 tons / year).

Production

Polytetrahydrofuran ( polyTHF ) is a polymer which is created by the concatenation of a plurality of identical units ( monomers). Raw material for the production of natural gas is PolyTHF, more specifically, ethyne ( acetylene), a product which, inter alia, can be recovered from natural gas. This is reacted in a reaction with formaldehyde to butynediol. Resulting eventually into butanediol is formed by cyclization of the presence of a catalyst, tetrahydrofuran (THF), and then polymerized to PolyTHF.

Use

PolyTHF place in very different areas of use:

Textile industry

The textile industry uses polyTHF for the production of spandex or elastane fibers. It processes the spandex fibers with cotton, polyamide or polyester fibers to fabrics from which, for example, stretch jeans, swimsuits, socks, underwear or sports performance apparel are produced. Spandex fibers are characterized primarily by their high elasticity. In addition, they are light, dimensionally stable and gentle to the skin.

Other areas of application

Also thermoplastic polyurethane elastomers ( TPU) are produced from Polytetrahydrofuran. These are to be flexible, for example, processed and abrasion resistant hoses or cable sheaths. Also skateboard and inline skate wheels are partly made polyTHF.