Water-Induced Self-Blown Non-Isocyanate Polyurethane Foams

For 80 years, polyisocyanates and polyols were central building blocks for the industrial fabrication of polyurethane (PU) foams. By their partial hydrolysis, isocyanates release CO₂ that expands the PU network. Substituting this toxic isocyanate-based chemistry by a more sustainable variant-that in situ forms CO₂ by hydrolysis of a comonomer-is urgently needed for producing greener cellular materials. Herein, we report a facile, up-scalable process, potentially compatible to existing infrastructures, to rapidly prepare water-induced self-blown non-isocyanate polyurethane (NIPU) foams. We show that formulations composed of poly(cyclic carbonate)s and polyamines furnish rigid or flexible NIPU foams by partial hydrolysis of cyclic carbonates in the presence of a catalyst. By utilizing readily available low cost starting materials, this simple but robust process gives access to greener PU foams, expectedly responding to the sustainability demands of many sectors.