Technical Definition of Polyurea
A polyurea coating / elastomer is that derived from the reaction product of an isocyanate component and a resin blend component. The isocyanate can be aromatic or aliphatic in nature. It can be monomer, polymer, or any variant reaction of isocyanates, quasi-prepolymer or a prepolymer. The prepolymer, or quasi-prepolymer, can be made of an amine-terminated polymer resin, or a hydroxyl-terminated polymer resin.
The resin blend must be made up of amine-terminated polymer resins, and/or amine-terminated chain extenders. The amine-terminated polymer resins will not have any intentional hydroxyl moieties. Any hydroxyls are the result of incomplete conversion to the amine-terminated polymer resins. The resin blend may also contain additives, or non-primary components. These additives may contain hydroxyls, such as pre-dispersed pigments in a polyol carrier. Normally, the resin blend will not contain a catalyst(s).
Understanding Polyurea
Polyurea is a remarkable protective coating system with a range of uses limited only to your imagination. Some have even called it a “miracle” coating system. With its high strength and adhesion characteristics and its ability to resist abrasion and corrosion, it goes on fast and stays on long.
The first sprayable polyureas hit the market in the late 1980’s as a plural-component system that could be applied using portable commercially available equipment. Polyurea is moisture insensitive, flexible, chemical and abrasion resistant, cures in seconds or minutes even at sub-zero temperatures, allowing for rapid year-round, labor saving and cost-effective installation.
Common applications for Polyurea are waste water treatment linings, tank coatings, pipe and pipeline coatings, manhole and sewer linings, flooring and parking decks, bridge coatings, truck bed liners,, railcar lining and track containment, water parks and playgrounds, landscape and water containment, fuel storage, aquarium lining, architectural design, theme park and decorative design, roof coating, marine, line striping, joint filler and caulk. The markets for which polyureas are being successfully used are rapidly growing.
100% solid polyurea elastomer systems are highly resistant to deterioration under extreme weather conditions. Tough and chemical resistant, along with rapid curing, the systems are excellent for containment of waste products, fuels and chemicals. The systems are offered in formulations that can be applied directly to various metals, concrete types or geotextiles for long term protection.
Hundreds of companies have developed thousands of formulations with physical properties that rival, and often exceed, those of traditional protective materials. Of particular interest to specifiers, applicators and end-users are the fast set characteristics of polyurea compared to traditional systems. Depending on the formulation used and the application polyureas are saving thousands of dollars in time and money with their ability to “return the substrate to service” in minutes – often seconds.
|
