Author(s)

Ahmed Adel Mahmoud^1*, Elsayed Abdel Ader Nasr², Ahmed Abdel Hamed Maamoun¹

¹Department of Physics and Mathematics, Faculty of Engineering, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt.
²Department of Structural Engineering, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt.

Rigid polyurethane foam is found virtually everywhere in our modern world and is used in sound and thermal insulation applications such as refrigerators, insulated buildings, thermosets. Organometallic compounds are used as polyurethane catalysts since they are very highly selective towards the isocyanate-polyol reaction. Also, amine catalysts are used to balance both the gelling reaction and the gas-forming or foaming reaction responsible for foam formation. In this work, the effect of a tin octoate catalyst on the mechanical properties and morphology of polyurethane foam were investigated. Also, the thermal conductivity and sound absorption coefficient for polyurethane foam mortar formulations were measured. The morphological properties of polyurethane foam were investigated using scanning electron microscope to determine the influence of varying the concentration of tin octoate. It was clear from the results that polyurethane foam has good thermal and sound insulation capabilities.

Polyurethane Foam, Organometallic Catalyst, Compressive Strength, Thermal Conductivity, Sound Absorption Coefficient

Mahmoud, A. , Nasr, E. and Maamoun, A. (2017) The Influence of Polyurethane Foam on the Insulation Characteristics of Mortar Pastes. Journal of Minerals and Materials Characterization and Engineering, 5, 49-61. doi: 10.4236/jmmce.2017.52005.